Who's side?
by Silvia Moretti
Summary: During the events of OoT, but with a twist. Dark Link is on another mission for Master - but on it, he finds friendship, love, and a little bit of his past. Who's side is he actually on? And when he is forced to battle the green-clad hero, who will survive? Lots of OCs, and light Zelink. Rated T for violence and dark themes. Updates irregularly; sorry if it gets graphic.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda. Excuse me while I get a tub or ice cream and cry.**

**Also, be forewarned - I am ****_not_**** the best writer, though I wish I was, and so be prepared for crappy parts. But some of it will be good! I promise. And, yeah, it is based off of OoT. So, enjoy!**

**-SM**

CHAPTER ONE

I should have known better.

Really, I should have.

It was just a roll of the dice to see how fast I could track them, now. The flip of a coin was the decision. It was a really, horribly terrible mistake on my part. I growled at my own stupidity. I stopped as I realized that, to the people around me, it probably looked like I was growling at them.

But I wasn't; and now that I'd gotten mad, they probably hated me even more.

I glanced at the sun's position. Half past noon. I sighed on the outside, attempting a bored look at the farmers with hammers and pitchforks surrounding me. Inwardly I was seething. There were five of them. One of me. No sweat. It was just a waste of time – which I had very precious little of, mind you. Anyway, they weren't trained fighters, like I was. This was going to be easier than pie – and believe you me, I knew a thing or two about pie.

I could have beaten twice as many, easily.

"Look," I started to say, "I don't want to fight-" but I was cut off as they charged. I sighed again.

One was a bit quicker than the rest on the uptake. He shouted a battle cry, and I snorted as he tried a clumsy thrust. Faster than their eyes could follow, I flicked my sword out of its black and gray scabbard and sidestepped right in between him and another farmer, who had moved forward in hopes of catching me off guard. The first farmer, meeting no resistance to his clumsy parody of a thrust, stumbled forward, off balance. The second one tried an overhand cut (although his sword was tiny compared to mine) and I was able to block, and then thrust. I pulled my midnight-black blade out and lunged at the first farmer, who was just managing to get up.

He blocked my first cut, but then fell behind on the rhythm as he realized I was attacking with lightning speed.

A couple more cuts and he fell, too. Some sixth sense warned me to lift my shield and right as I raised my right arm with the gray shield on it, I became aware of an odd whistling noise and I felt a thump as someone's hammer hit my shield, just in time. I lower my shield and get back to fighting. My glowing red fairy, Ivan, buzzed around me, shouting "HEY!" and "LISTEN!" in the farmers' ears. I knew what it was like to get that treatment. Poor farmers.

However, none of that showed on my face. As much as I was concentrating on where to hit next, and who was where – I could feel my red eyes shining; because, when I fought… I just felt so… at home. I knew who I was and what I was doing. It was something… I don't know, definite? I _know_ every aspect of this.

And, after only a few more seconds of fighting, the farmers lay, all of them still breathing - albeit slowly - on the ground. I stepped out on the road, looking for the women who had taken the kids – and I needed those kids – away from me.

I caught sight of something moving in the long grass that lined the road. I stealthily snuck around in a wide arc, so that I would be attacking from a position up road. Maybe I'll be able to get back to Master on time with the quarry. Maybe… maybe I won't be punished.

When I finally got to the rustling grass, I realized that I was wrong. It's just an animal… a fox, I think. I was never very good with animals. He jumps at me, and I swing at him with my sword. I manage to create a long gauge in its snout. He howls loudly - and in my alarm, I make another mistake.

I was already off balance, so when it howled and circled me - stupid animal, just run - I decided to take the initiative and so I ran. I ran, as fast as I could, in the opposite direction - right towards the woods. I figured I could kill two birds with one stone. Run away from the fox, while running straight towards the nearest settlement, which is probably right where the women had taken the kids.

But then the fox was upon me and I fell, defenseless, to its raking claws. Luckily, I'm a fast healer.

Really fast.

The only thing that can actually maim or kill me, is the Master Sword. The _real _one. My counterpart's sword.

I swung my sword, and this time the swing was more controlled. I hit the fox right in its rib cage, and even heard an audible _crack!_ as the bones broke.

Breathing heavily, I turned away from the dead fox and looked at the sun. "Oh, Farore!" I shouted in frustration. One o'clock. Growling even worse now that I knew what awaited me after I completed the mission, I checked my wounds. Everything was healed, not a drop of my blood to be seen - and the scars were fading fast. I stood up and sprinted toward the village.

Today was obviously _not_ my day.

I had started off the day with a fresh grin on my face, satisfied that I could track the two young kids that Master had sent me to deal with. Okay, so maybe I was a little overconfident.

Okay. I was _really_ overconfident.

I had figured it would take one hour tops to find them, and one hour tops to get there and back. So, you figure two and half hours, just in case an accident comes up. Which left… three and a half hours (I haven't done math in a while, I realized. Not that I could change that. Master's pretty cruel when it comes to things important to me) to do whatever I want. I couldn't drag the kids around with me, so I'd do that last.

I should have known I would never get away with it, and that it wouldn't work. Ever. I'd never be able to relax and wreck things without a worry in my mind. Because Master was always there. But I didn't know then. So for the first three hours, I went around, asking about the Hero of Time - don't get me started on him - and his whereabouts, finding nothing but a bunch of rumors.

I went to the Gerudo Fortress and tried to use their arrows to practice archery. They said no, naturally, and demanded that I use my own arrows. I'd happily have done just that, except that everything that I create out of shadows has to always be touching me.

Which is why I couldn't use my own arrows.

Back to, uh, Master. See, he knows everything going on inside my head - and sometimes even takes complete control of me. He bends my emotions. He causes me pain.

Extreme pain.

He… he tortures me.

As I think about all the things he's done to me, I wince. Momentarily I lose track of what's going on, and I get zipped out of the portal - and the little kids I captured. I grab them by the scruff of their necks, again, and walk straight into a brick wall - except there was a shadow there from a different building, and we walk back into the portal.

Searing pain rips through my body. It's pure agony to touch a real person and head through a portal. Although, upon reflection I suppose that it hurts every single time I touch a real person. Although it hurts more to touch some people, than others.

Why? Long story. But… let's get back to meditating on my day, huh?

So, I went and tracked down the kids, who were carrying important messages from the Sheikah (the Shadow Folk) to the King of Hyrule, Otis. Luckily I was able to catch the kids before the trail got cold, again, and this time capture them.

After a brief fight, which ended with me dissolving into the shadows with the kids (ouch) and jumping into the portal with them, I was now… here.

We're here.

And suddenly I feel a sharp pain in my side as one of the kids poke me through a hole made by the fox.

"OW!" I yell at him, turning.

He stares at me in horror.

"You… You… how… your face…"

He reaches out hesitantly to touch my face. I swat at his hand, yelp at the pain, and dance away from him. Then, getting a steely look in my eyes, I draw the anti-Master Sword (my personal name for it) and point it at his chest.

"Don't _touch_ me," I growl, my voice dangerously quiet.

He stepped closer to the girl, fear showing in his eyes. I grin at them again evilly and feel my red eyes flash with anger.

I had forgotten about my skin.

See, every time I enter this realm, the Master's realm, I gain a bit of my own perspective again. My skin, instead of being gray, turns back to its normal, tan color - although by now I'm sure its pale from the lack of sunlight. When Master sends me out, it's almost like he puts a mask over my face and it gets tainted gray.

And suddenly I drop my sword, which immediately disappears after leaving my hand, and gasp in pain. Starting in my left hand and extending outwards, a terrible, burning pain raced through my body.

I shuddered and dropped to my knees.

_You're late, _growled a voice from the darkness surrounding me.

"I-I brought them, M-Master," my voice was barely above a whisper.

_YOU'RE LATE!_ The voice yelled in my mind.

"N-No Master. You said…"

_I said to be back an hour past noon. You arrived THREE HOURS LATER!_

I crumpled completely to the ground, biting my lip so hard it bleeds. I can feel something warm - a tear, I realize - slide down my face. At the same time, where the tear traced down my face, I feel a cold, sharp blade slip down my face. The problem with your master being banished in the dark world: I can't heal here. I heal just like a normal person would heal in the regular world.

"Master…" I start to plead. But then I realize what's going on. He's just messing with me again. For his own pleasure. I steel my nerves and say in a strong, defiant voice, "You never specified what day I was to be here." My lips twist into a grim smile. "As far as I'm concerned, Master, I'm still early by…" I pause to do the math. "Nine hours."

_You… You… You STUPID FOOL! _The voice shouts at me. _YOU KNOW WHEN I MEANT! You… I… I can't… believe..._

I'm the one that can't believe it. Because I've just done it.

I've rendered Master speechless.

But then my day is ruined when I hear his slithery voice say _Do you know what this means? _His voice is deadly quiet, just like when I talked to the little kids.

_Punishment._

**So, there ya go. Chapter one! I hope you liked it. Please please please give me criticism! I actually like that. I want to get better, and if you review and give me tips, then this could get better. Anyway, yeah! Love you guys!**

**-SM**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone! I'm back! I think this chapter is here early, but I don't really care. Anyway, this wasn't recently written. This is something that's been sitting around in my computer for some time, so it's kinda old. But hopefully (if I remember right) the plot is still interesting! :D Anyway, here's chapter two!**

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Chapter Two

I regained consciousness with a low moan of agony. My head pounded with pain. I could feel dried blood matting my dark, black hair against my head and my left eye closed.

I tried to roll over.

And nearly shouted. My right leg sent out ripples of agony through my body. Same with my left arm and head. I moaned again. Why me? Oh, Farore! I took a deep breath and forced my eyes open.

Well, one of them, anyway. The left one was encrusted with blood and wouldn't open. But I could still see with my right eye, and that was good enough for me. But what I saw was not a pretty sight. My hat was torn; the end shredded off, and had an ominous red stain on it. I tried to move my head down to look at my body, but was once again defeated by the effort. I screwed my eyes shut and yelled in frustration.

And then I felt a warm, small, delicate hand start cleaning off my face and head.

"Who…?" My voice was tired - and sounded more defeated than usual.

"Shhh," responded a soft voice. It sounded like a girl, although everything was fuzzy and slightly muted.

As she spilled water over my eye, slowly working to remove the crust, I winced. Why did her gentle touch hurt so much? It seemed hot… Yet somehow… familiar.

"Who…" I tried again. "Who are you?"

Judging from the way she answered, I guessed she had a smile on her face. "Well, if it means so much to you, I'll tell you: I'm Kelly. Remember me? The girl that you… took."

I winced at the memory. "S… sorry. I'll take you home… just as soon as I can." I opened my eye again and looked at her. Her brown hair fell across her shoulders. The darkness in the Realm danced in her eyes, which were red like the rest of the Sheikah. Her lips were pursed in concern and, in the corner of her mouth, I saw the tip of her tongue protruding in concentration.

She noticed me looking and said soothingly, "James and I are to take you to the Gerudo Fortress in the desert just as soon as we can. Orders from Ganondorf."

"Not from… Master?" I forced out. Normally, Master made everyone call him that. Master.

"Hah! I'd rather die than call him that. Remember, James and I were taking messages to King Otis."

I looked at her with new respect. From someone so small and young - and a girl, too - she showed good loyalty and good courage. Note to self: girls can be courageous.

And she was cute.

_Someday she'll get herself a good guy to take care of her,_ I thought. Then I realized that, if Master won this war, she'd be his slave forever.

Not a happy thought.

She went back to cleaning my wounds. As she poured water over me, I felt slightly rejuvenated.

Until she touched me.

I assume she'd laid her hand down on my forehead to check my temperature (not that it would work. Seeing as how I'm just a shadow, my temperature is slightly - okay, a lot - different than normal people. I'm always ice cold!). But as she did that, the searing pain once again split through my body, making my wounds scream in agony.

My left arm shot up instinctively to knock her hand away. However, my wounds prevented any movements, and I cried out and let my arm drop back to the ground. Also, I had stiffened into the upright position, my right hand clenched.

"Ouch," I said through clenched teeth.

Kelly was staring at me through wide eyes.

I raised an eyebrow at her. "No apology?" I muttered, and finally summoned the courage and strength to look down at myself.

My black tunic, similar to my black hat, was ripped in several spots, including my left side, a long cut down my right leg, and a deep cut on my left shoulder. Blood spots were everywhere. My face was bruised up pretty bad, and… Well, there were a few other things, too. But I won't go into any more detail.

"Help me up," I told her. She shook her head, as if to clear it from whatever shock she'd been in before, and reached out. I noticed a pair of dirty gloves on the ground, and before I got up, pointed at them. With a questioning look in my eyes, I asked her, "What were those for? And put them on before you touch me. That makes it more bearable."

"These are the gloves I wore when I was cleaning your wounds," she told me, picking them up and putting them on. "I took them off because they were all dirty from you."

"From Master, you mean." I grumbled.

"Fine. From Mas- er, Ganondorf. _And_ you. Anyway… what do you mean, 'That makes it more bearable?'"

I shut my eyes and took a shaky breath. Never tried to explain this before. Well, there was one time, but that… doesn't count. Suddenly the image of his young face, bordered by blond bangs that fell into inquiring blue eyes, filled my face. He was reaching out to touch me… Then it was gone. I took another deep breath.

"Look… when people touch me, it's not good. It… hurts." She raised an eyebrow at me. I glared back at her. "A lot." She opened her mouth to say something, but I cut across whatever she was going to say with a frustrated sigh. "Just… put on the gloves. Like I said, that makes it more bearable."

She slipped on the gloves and dressed my wounds. Where she got all that stuff - herbs and clean bandages - I don't know. Nor did I bother asking. As she was finishing up my leg wound and starting on my side, I winced and said, "So, tell me about yourself."

She glanced at my face, which was contorted in pain, and said, "Okay, like what? What is there to tell you? You were spying on us, weren't you? So… don't you already know everything?"

I grimaced as she peeled my tunic away from the skin around the wound. Ow. "Tell me anything!" I said loudly, and probably a bit harsher than I should have. What I should have said (if she hadn't been clawing at my wound, trying to get grime out of it like some crazed dodongo) was "Tell me about you. Yes, I was spying on you - but not for very long, I didn't even know your name. I was lying, okay, and BE GENTLE! THAT HURTS!"

She paused what she was doing and sat back. "You have a nasty temper," she told me, "but fine. I'll tell you."

"My name is Kelly, and I'm 15 years old. I live with my Mom, Dad, and little brother, James, who is only seven. They're Sheikah, just like me. Mom and Dad are stationed together in Kakariko village, so that's where James and I are living with them. I'm not old enough to be assigned anywhere else yet. When you caught me, that was the first assignment I'd ever been on… but anyway, I love to go to the graveyard and talk with Dampe. He's a nice guy," she added after a pause.

"Anyway, I was visiting with Dampe one time, when someone stumbled into the graveyard. He was…" she stopped cleaning and gazed into the dark sky. "He was great. everyone teased him because he had freckles, including me, although I secretly liked them. I thought they were cute. He… he used to take me to the shop up by the entrance to Death Mountain. He'd buy me little trinkets - well, pretend to buy them. Then he would tell me that he stole it." Her eyes shone. "Of course, he always paid them back. He just wanted to impress me."

"Wait…" I said. "You're using past tense. What happened?" I may not be the brightest, especially when it comes to math, but I _did_ grow up with some grammar.

She tore her gaze away from the sky and looked at me levelly in the eye. "Ganondorf happened. He sent some of his idiot troops… about five of the really big green guys with clubs; what're they called?"

"Moblins," I answered. My mind was racing. Master sent five moblins to attack Kakariko Village? Why? What did he want? And… why didn't he send me? For a half second I was jealous. Then I realized how silly that was. She started talking again.

"Five moblins, along with about 20 bokoblins. It wouldn't have been that bad, but they somehow had captured Impa."

"Impa… she's the leader of Kakariko Village and the Sheikah, right?"

"Yep. She was at the time. An-"

I cut her off. "_At the time?_"

She glared at me, but I could tell that she wasn't really mad at me. "I'm getting there! _Anyway_, she had probably put up a good fight, because the one that had her slung over his shoulder had a broken nose." She laughed and went back to cleaning, shaking her head. "Impa was always encouraging us to hit the nose. Anyway, well, there she was, limp as a ragdoll and with the blade of a knife up against her neck.

"The bokoblin ran over to the rest of them, yelling something at them, probably, 'Hey, my ugly friends! Look what I have! Dinner!'"

I had to laugh at that. Her impersonation of the bokoblins sounded pretty accurate, and her translation of their grunt-like language was probably correct, which just made it all the funnier.

She smiled. "Well, they tied her to the head of a moblin, which was maybe a smart idea."

"Except you're Sheikah, who are pretty devious, and there are rooftops in Kakariko village."

"Right!" I liked how she didn't deny that Sheikah were devious. "I guess the moblins and bokoblins forgot to look around. Well, especially the one who had Impa tied to his head."

She paused and moved to my shoulder wound.

"Remember the boy I told you about, who had freckles? Well… he was a Sheikah. He was as devious as the rest of us, and he decided that he had to get Impa down."

"Smart guy," I put in. Impa was known for her tactics in battle. And for her leadership. And her fighting skills. Pretty much, Impa was renowned for everything.

"No… not really."

I looked up sharply at her. I was surprised to see tears in her eyes.

"He jumped off the top of the Shooting Gallery roof and straight onto the shoulder of the moblin. He reached up and sliced the ropes holding Impa to the moblin's head. And… and he hoisted Impa over his shoulder, jumped back over to the roof, and stumbled. The moblin had swung his club, and it was a direct hit… Luckily, he had just thrown Impa off his shoulder. Otherwise they would have both been flattened.

"He went flying through the air. He smashed into Impa's roof, and… he actually went through it. I had been protecting James in the cucco pen outside Impa's house - well, no one was coming our way anyway, but I think Mom and Dad wanted to make sure _I_ was safe, too." she snorted angrily. "I know how to fight. I'm 15 years old! But anyway, when he fell through the roof, I grabbed James by the arm - because I knew I couldn't leave the poor kid by himself - and ran over to the door.

I was picturing Kakariko Village, trying to recreate the scene in my mind.

"A couple seconds later, when we got there, the door had already been kicked in - probably by the bokoblins. There was my friend, lying on the ground. I could see that he was barely breathing. I ran over to him. James was shrinking back into a corner, looking at the disarray that Impa's usually neat house was in, as I ran towards the broken boards that had fallen through the roof. I threw a few of them behind me and cradled his head in my arms, on my lap. I had started crying by that time.

"Then… I saw the strangest thing. He opened his eyes and smiled at me. He _smiled_. I had continued crying even harder, and…" she suddenly stopped.

I looked at her quizzically.

"I… why am I telling you this?" she cried, stepping a half-pace back. "I'm your prisoner! Oh, Din, how could I have been so stupid!"

"Woah woah woah!" I said, spreading my hands out in a helpless gesture. "You're not my prisoner! And… What happened? Please… just tell me."

She looked at me uncertainly.

I tried to give her an encouraging smile, but I'm pretty sure I failed miserably.

"I… fine. Fine." She took a deep breath. "He had reached up a bloody hand and grabbed my hair. He pulled me close, and told me the three words I'd always been longing to hear from him…'I love you.' he told me. And then I asked him how he could smile at a time like this. He had told me that finally, he had everything he wanted. He had managed to say it in the nick of time. His grip on my hair tightened, and he pulled my closer… not that I argued or anything… and then…

She allowed a small smile to play at the corner of her lips.

"And then he kissed me."

"Just in the nick of time," I parroted.

"Just in the nick of time." She had a dreamy expression on her face.

"And then what happened?" I asked her.

"And then he died. He stopped breathing. I checked for a pulse, and found none. I screamed… and then James came up from behind me and handed me a bottle with a fairy spirit in it. He told me he had been saving it to use on me, but that I could use it on someone else if I wanted. I burst out crying again and smashed the bottle against the ground. The fairy spirit zipped out and circled around him, and his cuts healed and his skin, which had gone pale and cold, became full of color and life again. It was amazing. I couldn't resist laughing when James punched me in the arm, telling me that the bottle was special, and how could I have broken it?"

"It _was_ special," said a voice from behind me.

I turned and saw seven-year-old James walking towards me with a pouty face. "I got that from my best friend!"

Kelly and I exchanged looks, and then we all started laughing.

When the laughter had subsided, Kelly said, "Well, then he kind of woke up and held me in his arms. It was awesome."

"You're forgetting the mushy part," James said. "And then he kissed you _again_!"

I laughed again, and I had to clutch my side because it hurt so much.

James offered me a hand to help get up - I was still on the ground, and Kelly had finished ministering to my various wounds. She swatted James' hand away, since he didn't have gloves, and helped me get up.

"So, what happened then?" I asked. "Still doesn't explain why you were using past tense."

"Well," she began slowly, "Now he's constantly surrounded by people telling him he's a hero, and he's never talked to me since, and his family always goes nuts when they're around him…"

"Things change," I gave her a small smile. "Yesterday, I would have killed just to get my hands on you. Today, I'd kill to get you out of someone's hands. Especially if he was treating you like dirt. Not saying this guy is, but… if he needs some sense knocked into him, let me know."

She smiled.

"You also said that Impa _was_ the leader of Kakariko Village. What happened to her?"

"She disappeared. I mean… well, the strange thing was, as soon as I came out of Impa's house, my face stained with tears, the moblins and bokoblins retreated. Almost like… almost like they were waiting for him to die, and for me to confirm it." She shook her head. "What a silly notion. Anyway, for a few days after that, Impa was seen around the well and in the graveyard, but now… Gone like the wind."

I thought it was strange how there was no wind in the Dark Realm.

Ever.

I shivered.

"Come here," I said, deliberately changing the subject. "It's easier to portal over here."

I grabbed James' hair and said, "Don't move a muscle."

He nodded solemnly and said, "I won't even breathe."

"Don't nod."

He went to nod, then froze. "Okay."

Kelly, who was holding my hat, laughed and fixed it atop my head, after dusting it off. Then she took hold of my arm and said, "Don't drop me."

And I stepped into the portal. Luckily, Kelly had put some numbing medicine on my wounds. So it didn't hurt those areas too much. My head only screamed in agony and almost exploded. But then I caught a flash of yellow light and stepped out of the portal.

Immediately, my wounds started healing like they normally did. It was good to be back, I thought. And then I opened my eyes. The light was so blinding that I actually stumbled back and fell.

"It's hot," muttered Kelly.

I rolled my eyes sarcastically. "It is the desert. Anyway," I stood up, dusted off myself, and gestured towards the huge walls in front of us. "Welcome to Gerudo Fortress. Stick with me, and I'll make sure you're fine."

We started walking towards the gates, me still leaning on kelly a little bit, when I suddenly stopped walking. "Kelly," I said, "what's his name?"

Kelly looked at me, confused. "Um… James?"

"No. What was the name of the guy with freckles that fell through the roof and kissed you twice?"

"Oh, him." Kelly grinned from ear to ear as she said, "Liam."

My legs suddenly gave out from under me, and my head burned with pain. I stumbled like I'd been shot. And that's how I felt. Liam… why did that sound so familiar? I heard Kelly scream, and James shout a warning, and then I fell face first into the soft, burning hot desert sand.

And then… nothing.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey, everyone! here's (obviously) the update! I do have a couple things to say: the first one is that this thing is that this isn't really the best. But! I've tried to fix up a couple things - well, anyway, if there are plot holes, or major grammar/spelling mistakes, or if a sentence is randomly cut in half, please review or PM me about it! And... speaking of reviews... *cries* Guys. I have no reviews! Reviews are my life. Please, please, please review! Even if it's, like, two words. Anything is welcome!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda...**

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Chapter Three

I woke up to a bunch of girls staring me in my face.

They were giggling like they'd just won a giant stuffed bear or something. Or, since these were Gerudos, like they'd just finished robbing me of everything I own. In fact, I wouldn't be too surprised if they'd tied me up done just that. Gerudos were supposedly merciless, cutthroat thieves. I knew them as arrogant, self-centered females. They were all women - no men were allowed to be Gerudos. Once every hundred years, however, a male Gerudo is born. And he is their King. And this hundred years, it was Master who was their King.

So, since I was basically Master's right-hand man, I received special treatment from them. Special treatment included: not being killed on sight because I'm a man, and not being killed on sight because I'm obviously not a Gerudo.

But that's pretty much it.

I would just like to thank the Hero of Time right now, for wearing this ridiculously stupid outfit. I hate it. Who would want to wear a green tunic, and a green, pointy hat? He's not a Kokiri, for crying out loud - he needs to get over it! Anyway, at least mine's black. Although I wish his attire was more… I don't know, normal? People give me weird looks. Especially the Gerudo. I suppose that only makes sense, seeing as how I dress the opposite of the Hero of Time, who is the archenemy of their King.

Anyway, they were smiling and giggling at me (I noticed that they were all too young to be fully-fledged Gerudo Thieves), while I was staring them down with looks that could kill from my red eyes.

I recognized one of them - she was one of my many enemies here at the Fortress. Most of them hated my guts - hence the harsh light in her eyes - and she was no exception. "Hey, Vessay, where are those kids I came in with?" I shot at her.

"Aveil said to kill them." she said distractedly. "So I took them to the Archery Practice behind the Fort, and… well, you don't have to worry about them."

"AVEIL SAID TO KILL THEM?!" I screamed in her face. "AND YOU ACTUALLY DID IT?!"

They all stared at me with blank looks, except for Vessay, who was snickering.

And then they all busted out laughing.

"You… you should have seen your face," one said, between wheezing breaths.

I glared at Vessay. "Not funny!" I yelled at her. "Where are they for real?"

They just kept laughing.

"Ha, ha, yes, it was very funny. Now, will you give me an answer or what? Where are they?"

Still being ignored. It's nice to know I'm loved.

"Ugh. Gerudos are just fabulous at the straight-answer thing, aren't they?" I muttered under my breath.

But Vessay heard what I said. "Much better than you," she shot back, "and at least we wear normal clothes." She eyed me up and down.

"My clothes have nothing to do with this," I said. But I could feel the tips of my pointed ears burn. "Just tell me where they are."

"No."

"Yes!"

"No! You're not my superior. In fact, I'm your superior! I'm a Gerudo woman."

"No, you're not," I growled back. "You're still just a child."

Her face flushed red. "That's no way to speak to a Gerudo!" She shouted at me.

"Vessay," I said flatly, "tell me where they are for real, otherwise I'll tell the King."

Everyone shut up at that.

I hated to do it, especially since I knew they would hold me to that promise, but I had to.

Vessay glared at me, and then finally said, "Aveil had them thrown in the dungeon. We weren't sure we could trust them… After all," she added in a snobbish tone, "they are your friends. Who knows what habits they've picked up from you."

I took a deep breath, trying really, really hard not to punch her in the face. But, instead of showing it, I assumed a bored expression, then suddenly let myself catch on fire, and I shouted, "GET GOING!" as loud as I could in her face.

I'm pretty sure I saw spittle.

But hey, that's what she gets for arguing with me.

Vessay and the other girls all ran off, frightened by my tone of command and startled by the fact I had actually shouted at them.

After that, I ran through the fortress, trying to find the dungeon. After a few minutes of wandering around, realizing I was lost, and trying to gather my bearings and get out, I leaned against the wall of the Fortress and looked at the cliff face that was directly in front of me. I looked up the cliff face, my head tilted to the side quizzically as I saw a ledge that was pretty high up. There were wooden beams on the ceiling, and a fence that ran along the edge; and since it was in the side of a cliff, there were shadows up there.

I stepped close to the wall that was shadowed by the cliff face, and was about to use the shadows to get up there, when someone grabbed my arm. I spun around.

"Aveil!" I gasped. "What're you doing here?"

"I could be asking the same thing of you, Dark Link," she snapped back.

Geez… these people sure are hospitable.

"Where's Kelly and James?" I demanded.

"I think you were about to go find out," she retorted.

"What are you talking about? I was just… stepping into the shade!"

She rolled her eyes and said sarcastically, "Oh, yes. And I'm your best friend!" she said with a fake smile.

"Okay, so, maybe I wasn't just stepping into the shade. But, Aveil, tell me where you put those kids!" As she drew breath to answer, I cut her off. "I know you're in charge when Nabooru's gone, so don't try to feed me any lies about 'I'm not in charge.' Plus, Vessay told me you threw them in the dungeon. Please don't tell me that's true."

"Okay, fine." She said sarcastically. "That's not true."

I glared at her.

And then, in the blink of an eye, I pulled the anti-Master Sword out of its sheath and pressed the point against her throat.

"So," I said casually, "where are those kids again?"

"I'll take you to them," she growled, "but first I ought to relay a message to you from the King."

"Relay it," I spat at her.

"He said… let's see, what was his exact wording? Oh, yeah. He said, 'Tell that idiot hero's shadow that he should go spy on his counterpart.'"

I almost sagged in relief, although I knew that to do so would be a bad career move. So instead, I just pulled my sword back a bit and told Aveil to take me to James and Kelly.

"Getting friendly, are we?" She commented, but she shut up when I growled at her and gestured for her to continue - using my sword, of course.

We marched inside the fortress, and I couldn't help but notice the evil looks the Gerudo were giving me. Probably word had gotten around that I had threatened Aveil. Of course, to them, everyone has to listen to Aveil. They would never dream of threatening her. Plus, she was too quick for them. But to me, they all listen to Aveil, and I could do whatever I want.

As long as it's okay with Master.

I growled with frustration at that thought.

"What?" Aveil snapped, taking my growl as one of impatience. "We're almost there."

"We'd better be." I said gruffly, covered the action smoothly.

When we got there, I was surprised to see that they were in good condition - which is to say, not too beat was sporting a cut on his upper lip, and a bruise on his arm, which looked painful for an seven-year old. It was mostly purple, but had a few yellow patches. I idly wondered what he had done to earn it.

Kelly had obviously intervened for her brother's sake. She had a shallow cut on her cheek, a totally defiant look on her face, and when she stood I noticed she was limping slightly - favoring her right leg.

I walked up to the bars of their cage, and without turning around, put my hand out for the keys. I could hear Aveil trying to regulate her breathing and get her temper under control. She reached her hand out to hand me the keys, and dropped them into my hand.

I took the keys and walked up to the cell, only to pause outside and look at Kelly. There was something familiar in her eyes… I looked closer, slowly cocking my head to the side as I examined her.

"Well? Are you just going to stand there, staring at her like some lunatic, or are you going to open the door and let out my prisoners?" Aveil snapped at me.

I was snapped out of my trance, trying to bluff my way through. "I hadn't been expecting you to actually hand the keys to me. I figured I'd have to challenge you, and then you'd lose in front of everyone, even after cheating multiple times, and then you'd be a disgrace to your uniform. No," I added as an afterthought, "to the entire Gerudo race. Losing to an outsider."

Pretty much all of that was a lie. The only real part: she would cheat, if we had fought. Other than that, I'm not sure, because I wasn't too sure I could actually beat her.

But she believed me. Last time I'd challenged a Gerudo, I'd won (because I cheated. But, hey, she cheated too!), and she'd been pretty good. Anyway, it was disrespectful to even say that to Aveil, since she was so high-ranked. She took it like a slap in the face. She was shocked for a second, and then her shock turned (almost immediately) into anger. However, I took that moment of shock to open the door to the dungeon, grab Kelly and James' arms, and run out the door with them.

I'm pretty sure the whole fortress could hear Aveil as she stormed out the door after us, scimitars drawn, shouting, "YOU LITTLE WORM! THIS IS NOT OVER!"

I grinned. It was never over with Aveil.

"Until next time!" I called to her furious figure, which disappeared as we turned a corner. We kept running, until Kelly finally tore her arm out of my vise-like grip, and rammed her shoulder into mine, sending me off balance and toppling into the wall.

"Woah!" I shouted, hitting the wall hard. "What was that for?"

I glared at her. I had just saved her life - and that of her little brother's - from a fortress of bloodthirsty pirate thief women, and this is how she thanked me?

"That," she said angrily, "was for letting them capture us and beat us up."

I opened my mouth in shock. Like it was my fault that the Gerudos decided (well, Aveil decided) to throw my companions in jail. "It wasn't my fault!" I said, trying to make her see things from a different angle.

"No, of course not!" She shouted. "Nothing is ever your fault! You're just the innocent little shadow who does his master's will, and nothing else. They nearly killed James!"

She took a deep breath.

"Look," I said, "I know this looks bad from your point of view. But I didn't ask them to do that! They just did it because you're trespassers. I wasn't expecting to faint after my first few steps," I added.

"Oh yeah? How can we be sure this wasn't just a setup? They saw us walking towards them, with you, and then we stopped. We talked, and you fell. They shouted at us, telling us to go home to our mommies, and when we turned around, they came from behind and circled us. One of them, the girl who hates you, came up to us and started beating us up." She glared at me. "Tell me that's not because you were lying on the ground, eating sand at this point."

"That's not why…" I started to say. Then I paused. Kelly took the pause as a sign that I was giving in - which I was - and started talking again.

"Look," she said gently, "I guess you didn't really want us to come to harm. But we did. And its because we were travelling with you." I opened my mouth to argue, but she held up a hand to stop me. "If we hadn't been with you - if you hadn't captured us - we would be safely back at Kakariko Village with you family."

"And with Liam." For some unidentified reason, my voice caught a little on his name.

"Yes," she said. "With Liam."

James, who had been watching our conversation with some interest, said, "But Kelly, I like him. Can we go home with him?"

It occurred to me that James didn't know my name. "You can call me… DL." I decided to abbreviate. That way he didn't have to call me "Dark Link" or "Shadow" because those names are too… I don't know, sinister?... for a seven-year-old to be calling me.

"Yuck!" he said. "Who has a name like that? I think I'm going to call you big brother!"

I gave him a bit of a smile. "Only if that's okay with your big sister."

Kelly looked back and forth between us, James hopping up and down excitedly, and me, calm and sorry. she let the silence stretch until James had stopping jumping around. He gave her such a cute pouty face that even I had to be impressed. "Pleeeeease?" He asked her.

She looked at me - deep into my eyes. I looked directly back into hers. I liked what I saw there. She was a good kid. I hoped I could get her and James back to Kakariko Village. With any luck, the Hero of Time might procrastinate and go to the Shooting Gallery or do some other pointless thing there. Then I could drop off the kids and they'd be reunited with their family.

"Okay," she said slowly. "You win… big brother."

I smiled. For once in my life… I felt like I belonged.

Too bad that was going to change soon enough. However, I kept the smile frozen on my face.

"Awesome. Well, I suggest we get going. I'll call my horse, and we can ride out of here." I looked at Kelly. "You and James can ride together."

Her face tightened. "I can walk. And anyway, its not good for us to put extra strain on the horse."

"Can't we just warp there?" Asked James.

"Well," I explained, "We can't do that because I would run out of energy. I like to save that for emergencies. I can't go stumbling around because I decided not to cross Hyrule Field like a normal person. If we got in a fight, I'd need to be in top condition."

"Ah, okay," James said. I blinked. I guess seven wasn't really that young, but he had a good grasp on some things.

"So… does this mean you're going to walk all the way across Hyrule Field?" Kelly asked me. I was touched by her concern.

"No," I said. "We'll try to make it to Lon Lon Ranch before night settles in. I don't want to be caught in a battle with any big Poes. That could be messy."

Kelly nodded, then said, "Will we be able to stay at Lon Lon Ranch? Will they let us in?"

"Well," I said, "Probably not me-"

"Unless we paint you green!" James interrupted. I ignored him.

"-but I'm sure Malon would let you in. She's kind to strangers. Mostly."

"Mostly?" Kelly and James chorused.

"Mostly." I said firmly. "Now, we've lost half the morning sitting around - or laying around - thinking about where we're headed next. I say we go to Lon Lon Ranch and ask around about the Hero's whereabouts. We can stick around for a day or two, and then push on to Kakariko Village after that."

"Don't you think we ought to check Lake Hylia, first?" Kelly suggested brightly. "I mean, we're already pretty close to there, and it would save us a trip if it was the right place."

I noticed she said us and not you. I realized they were going to have to sit through this mission with me, and that could make things difficult if I needed to do some serious sneaking. But then I pushed that thought aside. It could be nice to have backup - and I was sure that these Sheikah would not back out on a fight.

Moving on, I considered her idea. Lake Hylia was the exact opposite of the desert - tons of water, filling a huge circle-shaped basin-like lake at the base of multiple mountains. It was a beautiful spot to relax, although I hadn't done much of that recently. There was a fishing place and a research lab, both next to the water.

It could be worth it to nose around there first. Reaching a decision, I said, "Sounds like a good idea. Come on," and started off towards the main part of the Fortress - back the way we came.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone... So, it's been awhile. I'm pretty sure I broke my "Updates every other week!" promise... but hey. This part was tricky to write! Anyway, I have good news! I GOT A REVIEW! WOO-HOO! So, here's a shoutout to Swamp Dragon Princess, who is my first (and sadly my only) reviewer! Also. I have a deal for yall. IF you review, I promise I'll go check out your profile and your fanfics, and all that good stuff.**

**So, without further ado, here's chapter four.**

**-SM**

Chapter Four

James reached down and tugged on my sleeve. "Two things."

I stopped, turned, and let go of the reigns all in one move. "Yes?" I said, not angrily, but not happily, either. We'd wasted half the day in the desert, because Aveil insisted that we spend a "friendly lunch" with the Gerudos, so that they could make up for their "lack of welcoming" when our "poor, tired bodies slunk up to the gates."

Aveil also insisted that we sit with her at the front end of the table, in the "seats of honor." I had just rolled my eyes and marched up there, seating James on my left and Kelly on my right. We ate, and then I announced that I would be leaving on orders from the King, and I left, wishing Aveil good luck with running the Fortress (muttering "Not!" just loud enough for her to hear), with Kelly and James trailing behind me like personal guards.

Now, we were marching through Hyrule Field. I could just barely see Death Mountain in the distance, the dark clouds circling the top. At the bottom of that (although I couldn't see it, I knew it was there) was Kakariko Village. To the left of both of those, closer to us, I could see more dark, almost purple clouds, and lightning flashing. That was where Hyrule Castle was - well, what used to be Hyrule Castle. Now it was Master's castle - a huge castle with one tower in the middle, floating above this massive lava pit with sides so slick and steep there was no way, if you were to fall, that you'd ever be able to haul yourself back up.

But to fall in the pit, you have to get through the Market, first. The Market used to be a splendorous place. Now, all the plants are dead. The fountain doesn't work anymore, and Master used magic to turn all the people he could find into re-deads. The Market, once bursting with life, was now cold and desolate.

Anyway, we were still in the south half of Hyrule. In front of us was Lon Lon Ranch. Kelly was seated behind James on Anope, my black Belgian horse.

I know, I pick weird names for my friends. Ivan, Anope… but they're other names, backwards. I can't go around calling "Navi! What's going on?" Because _my_ Navi the fairy isn't actually Navi the fairy. So I took her name, spelled it backwards, and got Ivan. Epona, the name of the Hero of Time's horse - well, I didn't want to actually call her to me. Especially if he had been _riding_ her. That'd be awkward. So, just like Ivan, I spelled Epona backwards.

As much as animals don't like me, and I don't like them, Anope and I get along quite well. Same with Ivan and me… well, mostly. Speaking of Ivan, I still haven't seen her.

An evil smirk formed on my lips. Oh, well.

"Well, big brother," James was saying slowly, "thing number one: why does your face change colors?"

I looked away from him and started at the ground.

"Well…" How do I explain this? "Okay. Basically… there's this guy, and he doesn't want people to see my real face. So, he changes it to gray so that people get scared of me. And," I continued, forestalling the question he was about to ask, "I can't change it back. But when we go through the portal, then I can change it back. He doesn't mind it then."

I grabbed Anope's reigns again, and started walking. She obediently followed me.

There was a long silence, broken only by the sound of Anope's hooves clanging against the hard ground.

Finally, I heard James draw breath to say something, but I smoothly cut him off. "So," I said quickly, "what was the second question that was on your mind?"

"I was about to ask it," he replied.

"Okay, go on." I said, wondering what the question was going to be. I hadn't let them on to most of my plans yet. I figured they wouldn't like it, and that they'd follow me best if they were still blind to the truth.

"Well, I was thinking: If you thought we could maybe make it to Lon Lon Ranch, and maybe get a place to stay there… well, where are we going to stay now that we're going to lake Hylia?"

_Ah_. That question. I scratched my head and said, "I was figuring - well, okay. Pretty much, we won't be able to make it to Lake Hylia by sundown."

"So," said Kelly, "You mean to tell me that we're going to spend the entire night in Hyrule Field, waiting for Stalchilds to come and gut us in our sleep?"

"Of course not," I snapped. "_You're_ going to spend the entire night in Hyrule Field sleeping while I stay up watching out for Stalchilds to make sure they don't gut you in your sleep."

"Fine," Kelly said shortly.

I met her gaze evenly and said, "If you want, I could just let you off here, miles from anywhere with no mode of transportation and no protection. Remember, you're unarmed. I, however, am not."

"Sorry," she said. But under her breath, I caught, "It's not like Sheikah need weapons. We have our hands and our feet - that's good enough for me."

I ignored the last part, partly because I felt bad for her and partly because she actually looked a little bit chastised. "It's okay," I said. "Just… don't forget who's in charge."

We travelled on in silence.

As night neared, I signaled a stop and said, "This place is as good as any for a camp. No fire, and unless you can find berries, no food. Here's what needs to be done," I said, gesturing towards the empty grass in front of me, "loosen Anope's saddle girth, get the blanket off her so you two can use it, and then watch for Stalchilds. I'll be back shortly."

I hadn't gone two steps when James said, "Where are you going, big brother?"

Inwardly I cursed, but replied sweetly, "Just checking the surrounding areas for enemies. Stay away from me and with your sister, and we'll be fine. Like I said before, I won't be long."

"Oh… alright."

I breathed a silent prayer of thanks to Nayru, asked for courage from Farore, and then wished that Din hadn't given Master so much power.

I ran lightly down a hill and stopped roughly 100 paces from the camp - far enough away that they couldn't see or hear me.

I took a deep breath, closing my eyes.

Then I reached out for the Hero, trying to find his life force. I hadn't done this in awhile, mostly because I wasn't feeling up to the task. I found a tedious hold on it. So he was indeed alive. Good. I tried to implant myself more firmly in his presence - in the back of his mind, so he wouldn't recognize I was there.

Now for the tricky parts.

I tried to find a train of thought that was similar to mine, so that I could latch onto it. Even a feeling would work…

I searched, probing as gently as I could. But I was slipping away, because he was moving around. Oh, Farore, I thought, just let me in!

Our feelings connected through an emotion. Anger.

I quickly grabbed onto it and floated through his mind, trying to figure out where he was. His mind, clouded by anger, was definitely not helping make the job any easier.

Every second burned in my mind, but I had to keep going.

Oh my goddess.

He's fighting Volvagia.

And he's winning. I mean, besides a few cuts and scrapes and burns - and the hole in the side of his tunic, clearly stating he got hit - he was actually putting up a tough resistance to the dragon.

Wow. My respect for this kid just grew about tenfold. Right now, I'm pretty sure his anger is the only thing keeping him alive. Volvagia blew fire, and I - I mean, _he_ - just managed to dodge it. I could feel the heat singe his arms.

I winced.

Okay; enough of that. I know where he is now. I guess I don't have to drag the kids to Lake Hylia anymore… I'll be able to take them straight home.

For some reason, the prospect of taking them home early dampened my spirits a little bit.

.

.

.

I trudged up the hill and got to camp to see James, rolled into a ball, fast asleep under the blanket. I looked around for Kelly, confused that she wasn't there, when I heard a whisper from behind me.

"You know I could have put you in a chokehold just now, if I hadn't recognized you."

I frowned. "And you should know by now that I would have grabbed a knife and stabbed you with it within seconds."

"Whatever."

I turned around and looked at her. She had wrapped her shawl around her face again, and had wraps covering the top of her head. The only exposed skin was on her fingertips, and her deep crimson eyes, which glittered in the moonlight.

'What were you doing?" she asked me. I was surprised to see the concern there.

"I was just…" I paused as I searched for an appropriate excuse, "scouting for enemies."

Disbelief was written all over her face. "Mm-hm."

"Whatever." I mimicked.

I could tell she was struggling not to laugh. I smiled and looked away. I could feel the blush on my ebony cheeks. I heard a snort, and turning, found that Kelly was sprawled on the ground, trying desperately not to let a sound escape her lips. He hand was pressed against her shawl in an attempt to hold them together. Her eyes were squeezed shut.

"Oh, come on," I protested. "It was just sarcasm. Not even that funny!"

She just giggled. I reached over and tickled her foot.

That got a reaction. She gasped and started laughing outright. Then she lunged for me and started tickling me back.

And that's how our massive tickle fight started. It was the most fun I've ever had - that feeling of absolute belonging, again.

It ended when I had her pinned against the ground, and she was flailing wildly. I suppose it wasn't her fault that her booted, dirty foot landed in my mouth, but still.

"Hey!" I cried indignantly. "No foul play allowed!"

She shoved me playfully. "You started it!"

Laughing, our gazes met. Then the laughter died quickly on my lips. I could see the smile lines by her eyes fade into nothing. Her eyes flicked to James for a split second before returning me.

Before I could even realize what I was saying, I murmured, "Your eyes are the most beautiful I've ever seen…"

The eyes in question glinted as she murmured, "Yours are just pools of crimson…" I blushed.

She leaned forward to get a better view. Before I even knew what was happening, I was leaning forward too. I reached out and pulled down her shawl, exposing the skin below her eyes…

Suddenly, there was a hot wetness pressing on my lips. Pain flared briefly - our mouths barely met - because her eyes widened and she pulled away, gasping.

"I'm so sorry!" she cried loudly. "I touched you!"

I winced inwardly, cursing Master.

But then I shushed her, gesturing towards James' sleeping form. "I-It's fine," I said, in what I hoped was a comforting tone.

She gulped, then lowered her eyes in shame. "I have a boyfriend…" she trailed off. But I got the point.

"I'm sorry, too." At my words, her eyes snapped back up to mine. Then she dropped her gaze.

"You said you'll take watch for Stalchilds?" she muttered.

I grit my teeth, hating that all my relationships ended with someone getting hurt. "Yeah," I said. "Get some sleep while you still can. It's… gonna be a long day tomorrow."

She looked at me, and for a second I saw an immense amount of longing in her eyes - and dare I say it, was that even love? - but it was gone after a second, making me realize that I'd probably just imagined it. Then she grabbed a blanket and cuddled up next to James. I watched her closely, waiting until her breathing calmed and she rested peacefully.

Then I laid down on my back, gazing at the stars - bright white against a pitch black sky. Hmph. I frowned. What was _that? _Don't tell me… my frown deepened as Ivan landed on my nose and immediately started talking.

"WhyyoulittleidiotdoyourealizehowhardI'vebeentryingtofindyou,Ilookedeverywhereforyouandstillcouldn'tfindyouandyou'regoingtogetitnow!" She said, all in one breath. I could see her eyes searching me for any kind of shame. I just grinned at her.

"Nope." I didn't have a clue what she'd said, but I figured I should just answer negatively. It always irritates her when I disagree with her.

"'Nope'?" She cried. "Is that the only welcome I get? We were seperated for _days_, after you vanished in that smoky tavern with the kids…" she stopped. "Hey, wait. What happened after that?" she finally asked. I knew it had been coming, and was prepared this time with a witty reply.

"Well, if you hadn't been so busy screaming in my ear to listen, and buzzing around the guards, then you would know. " I said smugly. "Also, if you'd been listening to me like a good little fairy, then you would've known where I was going, too."

She glared at me. "Fine," she snapped. "Now just tell me what happened."

"Can't I tell you in the morning?" I whined. "I'm tired. I just lugged a teenager and her little brother across Hyrule Field, and I had to put up with Aveil this morning."

"No. And, from your description of your day, I'd guess you started out in Gerudo Valley, which is where Aveil comes in, and that you took a couple Gerudo off to do something for Master." Like me, she never dared to say his name. We both served the same person, so it didn't really matter, either.

"Nope," I said again. "Wrong. Well, partly wrong. I took the two kids to Gerudo Valley,and once we got there, Aveil had them thrown in them in jail. Then, they got mad at me and we left. We traveled here all afternoon, and I had to put up with whining the _whole way_. And I had to tactfully dodge questions I wasn't supposed to answer. Now we're here, and I feel horrible, and I'm tired, _and_ you're annoying me, like always, and I really need to get some sleep. Wake me in two hours." I rolled over onto my right side so that she was disturbed from her perch on my nose.

She flew in a circle around my head, finally settling in between my left ear and my hat. She snuggled up there and, after silence had stretched over us for awhile, she said sharply, "You forgot to say please!" in my ear, and then fell asleep. I rolled my eyes and followed suit.

.

.

.

My dream wasn't as disjointed as usual, which was either a good thing or a bad thing - I couldn't tell.

I was in Kakariko Village, apparently - I could see the windmill in the background. I saw a girl, maybe four years old, holding the hands of two boys, run towards the graveyard. The boys, from what I could see, looked like twins - both with messy brown hair and mini-Sheikah outfits. One was a little bit older, though - maybe a couple of years older. Suddenly - this is where it starts getting disjointed - I was one of the boys, staring into her face is she skidded to a stop and spun around, planting her rump imperiously on a tombstone, crossing her legs, and resting her elbow on her knee and her chin in the palm of her hand.

She struck me as familiar, just a little bit - the way her eyes glittered with excitement and she tilted her head. "Did you bring the flowers?" she whispered in an excited tone.

I knew immediately she was talking about flowers for the grave she was perched on. But as I reflected on her voice, I realized just who this little young lady was.

She was Kelly.

As if waiting for that realization, my dream fast forwarded to a time where the three were a bit older - perhaps six or seven. The girl was crying as she tenderly held a doll, with its head ripped off, in her little hands. The younger one reached out hesitantly and patted her shoulder awkwardly, receiving a glare from the older one.

The older kid reached out his arms and wrapped her in a hug, saying, "It's alright, Kelly, I'm sure it was just an accident - Guru-Guru didn't mean it!"

She sniffled, "Oh, but he did, he _did!_"

"No he didn't!" The little boy insisted.

"I can take it to my mummy and see if she can sew it up," said the older boy, pushing the little one away. "Mummy's great at that."

"Don't shove me," the little boy murmured defensively. "If you do, I'll… tell Papa."

"Fine," the older boy replied. "But shove off, okay?"

After flashing him a hurt look, the boy wanders off. "So, Kelly…" the boy starts. They were alone, outside the windmill.

"Yes?" she gave him a small smile - but I could see her eyes glinting with obvious admiration.

He leaned over on a sudden impulse and pecked her cheek with his lips. Then he blushed profusely and stared at his shoes. She gasped and backed away a step. I could see her face turning a bright shade of pink. "W-what… why did you kiss me?" she asked in a small voice.

"You looked like you needed a kiss," he said quietly. Then he suddenly looked up. "I'm sorry! I won't ever do it again!" he said desperately. "Please be my friend still!"

"I…" she trailed off, and reached over and gave him a hug. "I liked it!" she said happily.

And then my dream ended as her face - and her cute voice - faded into a general whiteness.

.

.

.

"Dark Link," a voice whispered in my ear. "Wake up, you lazy dolt!"

"Don't wanna," I murmured sleepily. "Its still dark out."

"Oh my goddesses. You're so much like Link sometimes, its funny."

I sat bolt upright at that. I started at Ivan. "What did you say?" I demanded angrily.

"Nothing!" She replied cheerfully. "But its been two hours. You'd better go do whatever you have to do."

"Oh…" I rubbed my eyes and shook my head to clear it from all the fog. I thought I was having a really nice dream…with kids or something, maybe…

Ugh. I just wish I could remember. There was probably too much on my mind.

Speaking of things on my mind.

I glanced at Kelly, sleeping soundly. I switched my gaze to James, wondering if what I was going to do was the right thing or not. He looked so peaceful. In a few minutes, I realized, he would probably be crying.

And with that happy thought, I gently held their sleeping hands in mine. I winced a bit, but maintained my grip. Then I concentrated - gathering myself - and, with a deep breath, went through a portal.

Straight to Kakariko Village. The shadows around me thickened, then solidified, to become the buildings of the village. It was more of a small town, I realized now. But whatever.

Kelly and James were next to me. They hadn't stirred yet. I considered waking them up to say goodbye, but then decided against it. That had been my original plan, but I improvised. I picked up James and led him to a corner, where he'd be protected from the wind better. I did the same thing with Kelly. I glanced wistfully at their sleepy faces again, and then walked a few paces away. Ivan was still holding onto my ear tightly, aware that I tended to move abruptly.

"Are you okay?" She whispered.

"Nope."

"Oh…" she seemed not to know what to say. "So… we should go back now?"

"Nope."

"Well, why not?"

"Because." I said. "There's one more thing I have to check."

I turned abruptly away from them and walked up the stairs to get to the Shooting Gallery. I waked in. The man at the counter - I didn't know his name - started in surprise at the sound of a customer. Then his expression turned distrustful as he took in my getup. _Thanks again, Hero,_ I thought distastefully.

"What do you want?" The man snarled.

"I want to play," I told him with a sardonic smile.

"One game's 30 rupees," He said shortly. "Got enough?"

I grumbled. Normally, one game would be about 10 or 20 rupees. Rip off. That was okay, though, because I knew I would win and get the prize.

Whatever the prize even was.

He started to hand me a bow, but I pulled out my bow and said, "Just the arrows, please."

He frowned. "If you have arrows, then use yours."

"I don't have any arrows."

"Fine," he said, tossing me a quiver. I slung it over my shoulder.

"Easy, Medium, or Hard?" he asked me.

"Hard," I snapped back.

"Fine! 3… 2… 1… Go!"

I started shooting the targets as fast as I could - and I'd been practicing ever since I had a bow, which had been after the Hero of Time beat Phantom Ganon in the sacred Meadow Forest.

The last target shattered, along with the arrow, with a loud _crack!_ I lowered the bow and looked at the man running the gallery. He was staring, open mouthed, at the now-empty spot that the last target had been in.

"So," I said casually, dropping the bow and thus making it disappear, "what's the prize?"

His eyes bulged. I never knew that he had such big eyes until that moment.

"Well," I said, growing impatient, "if there is not prize, then I'll have to fix the sign." I started walking towards the sign on the counter, which said:

Welcum to the Shooteen Galeree!

Ther re 3 levls of this game:

ese, meedium, and harde.

Fine prizez four the winr!

"For the love of Nayru… You can't speak as well as can't spell, is that it?" I muttered.

"Uhn, n-no, I ca-can s-speak! ...s-s-s-sir!" He stammered. I rolled my eyes.

"What's the prize?" I demanded, a little bit haughtily.

"No one's ever won on hard before, so the first prize to give away is… 100 rupees." He reached into the counter and pulled out a silver rupee. My eyebrows shot up. I was just here to get some anger and frustration out of me. And it had worked.

"Thanks," I told him. "And from now on, don't charge people 30 rupees because they dress funny." I realized I was doing the Hero a favor. I frowned, remembered where I was and so smiled, and then stormed out of the gallery, pocketing the silver rupee.

Ivan came out from hiding under my hat. She yawned. "Can we go back to sleep now?"

"No." I replied shortly.

"Fine! But _I_ am." She shot back under my hat. I just rolled my eyes; and she thought I was lazy…

I wandered around Kakariko for awhile after that, gears constantly turning in my head. I thought about my dream for awhile, trying to remember it. I eventually sat down in Anju's cucco pen, holding a cucco on my lap and stroking it gently.

"I wonder if he's here…" I quietly mused to myself, thinking about Liam.

"Wonder if who's here?" said a voice to my left. I looked up. It was Anju; go figure. She leaned on the fence, head tilted to the side.

"Just… nobody." I looked away. Anju was the only person who didn't judge. She loved everyone, thought the world was in perfect harmony… until her cuccos escaped.

"Nobody? They must be important if its enough to get you to shut up," she said with a smile. Truth be told, I was always this reserved. She just wanted to help make me "at peace". I sighed.

"Fine. I'm looking for someone… but I was hoping to find him before morning." I glanced up at the sky, which was just beginning to brighten.

"Oh? Who is it?" She inquired.

"His name is Liam," I told her. "But… don't tell anyone I'm looking for him."

Her eyes widened. "Liam Curr? He's famous over here! I'll go find him right now."

She started to turn away, but I yanked myself upright and cried, "No! No, don't!"

Anju paused. "Don't? Why not?"

"Um… just tell him that someone is waiting for him by your cucco pen. Don't tell him who."

"Okay," she said. "But why?"

"Keep the peace," I advised her. "And _don't tell him._"

"...Alright."

She walked away. I could tell by her posture that she was hesitant, but I ignored that. Taking a deep breath, pulled out my hookshot and latched onto the Shooting Gallery roof. I waited there, barely daring to breathe.

Voices.

Quiet voices.

A girl and a guy…That's Anju's voice. And the other one… my jaw dropped.

That has to be Liam. But… Liam was _that_ Liam?

No. I refuse to believe that. But I could never forget his voice…

My brain seemed to be splitting into two parts. One was yelling, "IT'S NOT HIM! IT CAN'T BE!" while the logical side was screaming, "BUT HIS VOICE IS THE SAME!"

"SHUT UP!" I yelled at them, in my head. For some reason, they actually obliged.

Anju and Liam came around the corner. When I saw him, I caught my breath and winced.

Liam _was him_.


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm back! I'm pretty sure it's been like two days or something - I'm to lazy to check - but I have this chapter ready, so I figured, why not? Anyway, I'm sure you'd rather read this (kinda small) chapter, so I'll shut up now. As always, reviews are appreciated!**

**Disclaimer: I've forgotten to do this for awhile... but no, I don't own Zelda.**

**-SM**

Chapter Five

The memory hit me like a sack of potatoes.

I was sitting at the edge of a huge pond. I recognized the place. It was the Fishing Pond by Lake Hylia. I was sitting next to a little kid - well, we were both pretty young. He was a couple years younger than me.

"And then Impa told me to get out before she broke my nose," he was telling me, unable to gesture with his hands since they were occupied with a fishing rod. "So I shot out the front door as fast as I could - and barreled right into Dad."

I snorted with laughter. "Oh man, Liam, you must have been so screwed!"

He nodded seriously. "I was! Well, at least, I thought I was, until Impa told me to 'come back here and milk the cow like a good little Sheikah."

"You're nowhere near good. " I told him.

"I know that. Impa knows that. Dad knows that. But the cow doesn't. And Mom babies me. Anyway, Mom wasn't there. Dad was, but he figured that if Impa was calling me good, then maybe I was coming to my senses and being good for once. So I walked over to the cow and started milking it."

"Did Dad yell at you?" I asked him.

"Nope. He still doesn't know, not even to this day, about the prank I pulled on him."

"And you even got Impa to help you," I shook my head in admiration. "That took some guts."

"Yup. Its a lot better than you could ever do, Ramian!" He shoved me playfully. Right at that moment, I got a bite. It must have been a huge fish, because it actually pulled me into forward.

Right into the water.

I couldn't swim.

"Ramian!" shouted Liam's voice. He reached out and grabbed my hand. He started trying to pull me back towards the beach.

"Let go of the line!" Called the owner, running towards us. Yeah, right.

"IT'S A HYLIAN LOACH!" screamed Liam. Definitely not letting go now! Hylian Loaches rarely bite.

"NO WAY!" I spluttered back. The Pond Owner jumped in after us. Together, we were able to wrestle the huge fish on to the shore. The Pond Owner, as he took the fish off the hook and threw it back in the pond, started yelling at us about how stupid we were.

"YOU THREW AWAY MY FISH!" I yelled at him, ignoring the fact that it was rude to interrupt.

"Yes." He said, calming down a bit. "I did, because you didn't catch it fair and square. It took all three of us to pull him out."

Liam and I looked at each other. "Now?" he asked me.

"Now," I agreed. And together, we shoved the Pond Owner back into the fishing pond, and then dunked his head under the water. Then we ran out of the Fishing Pond, and swam through Lake Hylia to get to shore. We could hear him shouting as us, and when we finally got to the beach, we didn't even stand up - we just laid there, laughing, and patting each other's backs like we were the best, closest brothers in the whole of Hyrule.

Because we were.

.

.

.

The light was dim. My head ached dully. There were quiet voices.

I strained my ears to try to find _his_ voice. After a few moments, I heard it.

I didn't know whether to be relieved or to be worried. I thought about my memory. A real memory. I thought about the second time I saw him - at least, I think it was the second time. Well, when I met him… later in life.

.

.

.

I snuck through the Sheikah caverns - a connection of caves stretching all throughout Hyrule, and beyond it, too.

This was my third mission alone, with only Ivan for company. My red eyes, which for once blended in with all the other Sheikah, darted around, trying to figure out where his room would be.

I saw a room with his family symbol on it. Since he was the last member of their bloodline still living, I knew this was his room.

I knocked.

"Who is it?" called a voice from inside.

"Guess," I laughed, trying to sound as if I belonged. I didn't actually know him, and he didn't know me, but I had to have some pretense if I wanted to get in.

He laughed like we were best friends. "Come on in," he said. "As long as you don't mind the fact I'm not in uniform." I laughed again and opened the door.

He had sandy-colored hair, which was unexpected. He was looked at me in confusion, obviously wondering why I wasn't "in uniform," too. And why, on top of that, he didn't recognize me at all. He was dressed like a normal villager, because he had just gotten back from his very first mission - which had been so big a success that Master sent me to go "deal with him."

So here I was. I quickly shut the door behind me.

"Um… I hope you don't mind me asking," he said hesitantly, "but… I don't seem to recall you. From anytime. Who are you?"

"Me?" I laughed, but this time it wasn't a very happy laugh. "I'm a messenger."

He relaxed a little bit, but I could tell he was still tense. "So… who are you a messenger from?"

I fingered the hilt of my sword. "I'm a messenger from…" I paused. Should I tell him? Should I just… deal with him? "...from my master."

"Don't get smart," he said angrily. "Who's your master?"

Faster than he could say "Woah!" I grabbed the hilt of the anti-Master Sword, drew it, stepped forward, pushed his back against the wall, and, with my right arm pressing his chest, I lightly held the sword, in my left hand, point up against his throat.

"Ganondorf," I said quietly. His eyes widened, but his expression quickly changed to impassive.

"Well," he said sarcastically, "why don't you go tell him that I'm busy."

"He doesn't want to ever see your pitiful face," I spat. "He wants me to make sure no one ever sees it again."

His eyebrows raised, and in a bored manner, he said, "Really? Well then, why did you come marching in here, in plain sight to everybody. If you leave, and they find my dead body, then you'll know it was you. Sheikah are very good at hunting people down, you know. You'll be dead before you even leave the caverns."

"One problem," I told him. "I'm just a shadow. I can warp wherever I want. So I can warp myself, and your body, to wherever I want." I smiled grimly. "Good try, though."

"Alright," he said, and I could see the barely contained frustration in his eyes. "Fine. Just kill me, then."

My eyes flashed with anger. "Do you really think I would kill you?"

"Thats basically what you just said."

"No it's not!"

"Yes, it is!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Okay, fine then," he said sardonically. "Then what do you plan to do with me?"

"I'm going to kill you." I told him.

"You just said you weren't!"

"That's not what I said. I said I didn't say that I was going to kill you. But now I've said it, and I'm going to make good on my threat."

"Wait," he said suddenly. "Before you kill me… will you at least tell me your rank? Are you a lowly footsoldier, or are you a leader?"

"I'm his right-hand man," I lied. Master had no right-hand man. I was just a shadow, to him.

"Good," he said. But there was so much satisfaction in his voice that I couldn't help but wonder what he-

Suddenly, there was a sharp pain in my side. I gasped in agony. Stars danced in my eyes. I crumpled to the floor, which actually dug the knife deeper into my side, and the Sheikah twisted it as it slipped out of his grasp and he dropped it.

He stood over me as I yanked the dagger out, spilling fresh blood on the floor. I blinked a couple times, and the stars disappeared. But I kept on the floor, pretending to still be hurt. My only defense now was the pretense that I was defenseless.

He reached down and grabbed the front of my jet-black tunic. "Ow!" I muttered, as he hauled me upright. The dagger clattered out of my hand and hit the ground. He quickly scooped it up.

"Tell me…" I whispered through clenched teeth, "who has the pleasure of killing me today?"

"Name's Liam," he said proudly. "Liam Curr, last of the Curr bloodline."

My face cleared. My wound was healed. I laughed at him, a good, long laugh. He looked at me, and I could see the gears in his head turning.

"Look," I said. For some reason, I found myself liking this guy. And I had a little voice in my head telling me that I shouldn't kill him. I knew I'd have to face Master's wrath if he ever found out, but… maybe he wouldn't notice. "I don't actually want to kill you. And… I lied when I said I was his right-hand man. I'm just… a lowly footsoldier, like you said."

He was staring at me in shock. Using this, I gently pried his fingers open so he would let go of my tunic. I stepped back.

"Why don't we just… pretend we never tried to kill each other. You go on with your life, I'll go on with mine. I promise not to kill you. And, in return for me not ever killing you, you have to lay low. Don't do anything fabulous. Don't draw Ganondorf's attention to yourself." I told him.

"Don't draw _attention_ to myself?" He practically shouted, recovering from the shock that I wasn't dead. "How, for the love of Nayru, am I supposed to do that? My whole life I've been waiting for the moment when I can make a difference, and now that I can, you're telling me not to? I don't think so!"

"Ivan." I called.

"Ivan?" He looked around, confused.

"Now, Ivan!"

And I dissolved into shadows.


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm back! With another chapter! It was just kinda sitting around, done, and I was to lazy to post it. *hides* Please don't kill me! Anywaaaaay, I have an announcement! We're about halfway through the fanfic... already. Man. I can't believe it! Well... oh well.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda, sadly.**

**-SM**

Chapter Six

It was bright. That was a change from before.

My head throbbed. My side ached from the wound that'd he'd given me - for no apparent reason, seeing as how it had healed immediately. I think it was just my mind playing tricks on me.

I was dimly aware of quiet voices talking to my right.

"...know what he wanted to talk about?" asked an uncertain voice. It sounded like Liam…

"Not really," responded Anju. "He just was just wondering if you were here."

"Well," Kelly put in, "he did act kind of funny when I mentioned your name, Liam." Wait. Kelly? what was she doing here? Then it hit me - it was bright, which meant it was at least morning, in which case Kelly and James would have woken up…

Uh-oh. I'm _so_ going to get it from Kelly.

"I hope he's okay," said James solemnly.

I cracked open my right eye and rasped, "Who's okay?"

James, who had been sitting at the foot of my bed, jumped up and ran over to me. Kelly, looking at me with a little alarm in her eyes, was standing towards the middle of the room, next to a sobbing Anju. Oops. Liam had one arm around Kelly's shoulders, which caused a little spark in my heart - resurfacing an emotion that Master had shut away long ago.

At least, I'd never felt it this strongly before.

Anyway, Liam looked different. His hair, which had been sandy at our last meeting, now had brown streaks in it. His face was grave and determined as he eyed me warily. He was wearing the traditional Sheikah outfit - a blue body suit with a white shawl covering his face. Of course, there were a few decorations on it - such as the Triforce and the Sheikah symbol - but it was all ordinary for a Sheikah.

James gave me a hug, which was a bit awkward since I was still laying down.

I sat up, eyeing Liam the same way he was eyeing me.

Kelly walked over to the bed, pulling on James' shoulder to get him to come away with me. "James," she said, "maybe you should go outside with Liam-"

But, surprisingly, Liam and I both cut her off at the same time.

"No," we said in perfect unison. Then we both looked at each other, startled.

"Umm, okay," she said slowly.

"James!" I called. "You should go outside and tell your best friend - the one who gave you a bottle that Kelly smashed - what happened. I bet he'll be excited."

"Okay, big brother!" James said. Then he charged out the door.

"So," Liam said angrily, "what brings you here, 'big brother'; searching for me again?"

"Again?" Kelly asked, confused. We both ignored her and kept glaring at each other.

"And who said that I came here looking for you? I just wanted to bring Kelly and James home," I said, hearing the dangerous, angry edge in my own voice.

"Well, let's see," he said, pretending to think about it. "Maybe it was the fact that Anju told me you wanted to talk to me. Or the fact that Kelly told me that you acted 'kind of funny' when she mentioned my name. Or possibly it was the fact that last time we met, you tried to kill me!"

Kelly inhaled sharply and stared at me in horror. "YOU DID _WHAT?_" She shouted at me.

There was a pause that felt like eternity, until I finally decided not to answer Kelly and said instead, "It sure looks like that's why I wanted to talk to you. But what I wanted to say to you was that I think you don't understand what you're doing."

"What?" He looked around, as if something would pop out of the walls that would make what I said understandable.

"Look, Liam, you have an awesome girl. Kelly's intelligent, pretty, and fierce. On top of that, she's sorely in love with you. You tell her you love her, after saving Impa's life, and then you shut her out. You stop talking to her. Now, you're not the weird kid with freckles, you're the amazing Sheikah that saved not only the day, but the day after that, too."

"Tha-that's not what happened!" He cried.

"Then what did happen? Are you telling me Kelly lied?"

"Kelly _told_ you? You're the guy that captured her in the first place, aren't you?" He turned to Kelly. "Kelly… why'd you tell him?"

"I told him because I knew he'd listen," she whispered, looking genuinely afraid. "And I knew you wouldn't."

Another one of those silences. This time, it shattered when Liam suddenly said, "Oh!" like everything made sense.

"'Oh' what?" I asked irritably.

He said, "Oh… it makes sense now."

I rolled my eyes. "Naturally."

"You like Kelly," he said simply.

I knew what he was implying, but decided to take it the opposite way. "Of course I like her - she's smart, kind, fierce, and like a little sister to me. What's there not to like?"

"No," Liam said forcefully.

"You were never good with words, were you?" I sighed in mock despair.

"You love her. And you came here to get me out of the way. I'll bet you any money that you put all this nonsense about me shutting her out in her head!"

"He didn't!" Kelly cried.

"I didn't. But that's not going to convince you, is it?" I said with a wry smile. "Fine. How about this: go… get married. Have little Sheikah children for all I care. Liam, I didn't want to kill you. I wanted to ask you a question."

"Ask it, then," he spat - in a similar fashion to the way I spat at Aveil.

"Do you ever catch a Hylian loach when you were about James' age?"

A look of panic flashed onto his face, but he put an irritated expression overtop of it and said, "What kind of question is that?"

"Its the kind worth answering," I replied. "Now go milk the cow like a good little Sheikah."

He actually stumbled backwards. His face was deathly pale.

"It _was_ you!" I cried triumphantly.

"No!" he shouted furiously. "I-I didn't catch any Hylian loach!"

"Not by yourself. It was you and… the owner of the Fishing Pond… and… what was his name?" Liam shook his head and backed away from me. "It was-it was Ramian, wasn't it?" My voice caught on the name.

"No," Liam whispered desperately. "No… my family…"

"Family?" I said, confused.

There was a pause in the room as everyone tried to figure out what was going on.

"Liam," my voice was deadly serious, "tell me. Who was Ramian in relation to you?"

"He was… Ramian was…" his voice trembled. "My older brother."

I looked at Liam; he looked at me. For a heartbeat, our eyes connected. Then I tore my gaze away. "You have red eyes," Liam whispered. "Red… like a Sheikah."

"No," it was my turn to shake my head and deny it. "Nope. They're red, for sure - but red, as in the opposite of blue." Although it hurt to say that.

"I… I have to go now," I said, taking a deep breath. "I have to catch the Hero before he gets to…" I realized that I probably couldn't announce my plans in front of everyone - Anju, who had been so silent I'd forgotten she was there, Liam, who was still apparently part of the Sheikah group… and, although it'd probably be okay to tell Kelly, I didn't want her following me. "...before he gets to our meeting place." At least that was partly true…

My eyes met Liam's again. "Take good care of Kelly," I said pleadingly.

"Ivan," he replied, forcing a crooked grin.

"Ivan," I nodded once, matching his smile.

And with that, I travelled through the shadows and back to Lake Hylia, on top of the Lakeside Laboratory.

Then I squinted, peering out at the dead tree. There were two figures standing next to it - one of them was easily recognizable as the Hero of Time. The other one was… I leaned forward, trying to get a closer view. It looked like a Sheikah. For a split second, I was afraid it was Liam - until I realized it was probably the one that had been helping the Hero for awhile. What was his name again? Oh yeah… Sheik. Huh. How ironic. I bet he had one heck of a childhood, growing up as a Sheikah with the name Sheik.

I realized the sun was setting, so the shadow of the tree would be behind it - on the side facing away from the Hero and Sheik. I quickly stepped into chimney shadow and out of the tree.

"...The monster in the Water Temple is the source of the curse." Sheik was saying. "Unless you shut off the source, this ice will never melt. If you have courage enough to confront the danger and save the Zoras, I will teach you the melody that leads you to this very spot, the entrance to the temple. Time passes, people move… Like a river's flow, it never ends. A childish mind will turn into noble ambition. Young love will become deep affection. The clear water's surface reflects growth. Now listen to the Serenade of Water to reflect upon yourself."

Sheik pulled out his lyre and began strumming it. I closed my eyes as I listened, remembering the notes in my head. D, F, A, A, B… D, F, A, A, B… I listened as they played it in perfect harmony. Finally, they stopped and Sheik said, "Link… I'll see you again…"

There was a flash of light, and I knew that Sheik had disappeared. This is what had happened on the previous two occasions, when Sheik had taught the Hero the Minute of the Forest and the Bolero of Fire.

I heard a faint splash, and peeked around the corner of the dead tree trunk. The Hero was gone, probably in the Temple. I made a split-second decision - it's time to get to the bottom of this - and decided to go after Sheik. This was important, and I could probably catch him before the Hero got to the illusionary room.

_Go!_ Master's voice filled my mind. I slowly started walking towards the edge of the island-like rock. I couldn't stop my legs!

_But I have to go after Sheik!_ I tried to tell Master.

_No,_ he growled back. _Do as I say._

Fine. I thought bitterly. And I jumped off the edge. I hit the water and started swimming towards the entrance to the Water Temple. Right before I got there, I swam into the wall - the shadowy wall, mind you - and transported myself to the place on my mind: Goron City, in Death Mountain.

Why did I choose there? Because the Gorons are sworn brothers of the Hero - and they always mistake me for him. _Always. _Also, they were so loud that it blocked out anything Master would try to say to me.

Anyway, I stepped right out of the wall, and in front of a Goron. Luckily for me, he had his back turned and was gulping down something - a bomb flower, I assumed - when he turned to face me. I heard the muffled explosion as the bomb exploded in his stomach. But I forced a smile.

"Morning, brother!" I said.

"Good morning… er, good night! It's the evening, dontcha know, brother?" He replied cheerfully.

"Well… yes. Thats right. Oops. The day just slipped by me, dontcha know, brother?" I said, remembering that they often repeated each other in conversations. They're not the most original, but they're pretty dependable when it comes to eating bomb flowers and a fight.

"Well yes!" He cried. " The days just slipped right by me too, brother!"

"Well, I'd better go check and make sure Death Mountain Crater is still faring okay without me," I grinned.

"Be careful, brother!" He called after me. "Last time you went in there, it was three days before you came out again!"

I smiled wryly. So, it had taken the Hero three days just to beat the Fire Temple? Hah, good luck with the Water Temple, then. He'll probably die before he even gets to the illusionary room.

I turned away from him, waving in acknowledgement, when I suddenly spun back around. "Brother!" I announced loudly. "Have you seen any Sheikah around here? I'm looking for one, and that's actually part of the reason I came here." Not even a speck of a lie. Yet.

The Goron's eyes widened. "Oh no, brother! I haven't seen any Sheikah around here. If I do, I'll be sure to tell him - or her, which is it? - that you were looking for them."

"Okay, thanks brother; and yes, please tell him I'm looking for him."

Now he waved his hand in acknowledgement.

Laughing quietly to myself, I walked away and whipped out my black Ocarina. I gently played the notes of the Bolero of Fire: F, D, F, D, A, F, A, F. And in a little bit of a flash, I disappeared, much like Sheik does, and reappeared in Death Mountain Crater.

Ivan came out from underneath my hat. "Dark Link," she snapped, "This is no place for us. Its so hot in here! We can't stay here for long!"

"You sound like Navi," I muttered. But I knew she was right. Suddenly I heard soft footsteps behind me. I spun around.

It was Sheik. This was going to be easier than I thought.

"What're you doing here, messing with magic?" He demanded.

"'It is something that grows over time, a true friendship,'" I recalled the words that had been spoken to the Hero before he entered the Fire Temple by Sheik. For some reason, they never left me. I could always remember them. "'A feeling in the heart that becomes stronger over time. The passion of friendship will soon blossom into a righteous power and through it, you will know which way to go. This song is dedicated to the power of the heart.' Then you taught the Hero of Time the Bolero of Fire. At the end of the song, you told him you'd see him again. Then you disappeared in a flash, like you always do. Crazy Sheikah."

His mouth hung open in a tiny little "o" of surprise. "I… You're not Link. How did you know that?" His voice sounded unusually high pitched.

"I know a lot," I told him. "It comes with being the Hero's shadow. Maybe you've heard of me?"

"Um… no."

"Really? That's too bad. Well, Dark Link's the name." On impulse, I stuck out my left hand to shake.

He just inspected it instead, looking at the Triforce symbol on the back of it. Mine, instead of being golden, was black. "The Triforce…" he mused.

"Oh, sorry," I said, pulling my left hand back and thrust out my right hand. "I assume you're right handed? Or are you just bad-mannered?"

He raised an eyebrow and reached out to take my hand. "Nah, just curious is all."

We clasped hands. Bad idea when you can't touch living people, much less ones that have touched the Hero… not sure if this guy had touched him, but thats what it felt like.

I cried out and fell to the ground. Suddenly, it was _really_ hot. And painful. The pain increased as Sheik tried to drag me back out of the Crater.

I managed to get a hold of myself and slip out from his grasp. I felt a little better, but thats not saying much. I dragged myself the rest of the way. When we finally got out (because it seemed like forever to get out), I gasped, stumbled against a rock. and sat down painfully. I stared at my right hand, which still ached and had red marks like you get if someone slapped you.

Except these marks weren't fading. Sheik hovered nearby, unsure what to do.

"Din's Fire! Are… are you okay?" He asked me hesitantly.

"Farore! That hurts," I said. "And… no, not really." I tried for a small smile, got nothing, and continued, trying to be nice. "But, uh… thanks for trying to help me back there."

"What happened?" He asked.

"It happens every time I touch someone living," I lied smoothly.

"Oh…"

"So, my fault. Don't know what I was thinking."

"Okay. I'd better be going, then. Hey, Dark Link…"

"Yeah?" I answered.

"Make sure you stay away from me. I don't want… certain things… to happen."

He gestured at me helplessly, and in a flash of white, was gone.

.

.

.

I hadn't given up yet. I knew Sheik was still out there, somewhere - I mean, come on, Hyrule isn't all _that_ big. The last time I'd seen him, he'd been at Kakariko Village. I was up on the top of the tower, hoping he'd fail to look up and see me; but naturally, he did.

And he glared daggers at me.

"What is it with all these people hating me?" I wondered aloud as I walked through the Lost Woods.

"Maybe it's because you always wear black and dress like the most famous knight in all of Hyrule," said a girl's voice to my right. I spun around, drawing my sword and taking up a battle stance.

And found myself pointing my sword at a little 10-year old girl.

"Teehee!" she giggled. "That thing won't help you if you get lost in here."

She giggled again. It was kind of creepy. And that, with the way she stood there, swaying in time with the music of the Lost Woods… Weird.

"Everybody will become a Stalfos. Everybody, Stalfos. And if you get lost in the Woods, you'll become a Stalchild."

I raised an eyebrow, attempting to look unimpressed. "Then you'd better run along, you little…"

"Oh, but not a Kokiri. I belong in the forest. In the Lost Woods. Everybody except Kokiri… Stalfos."

And then she ran off lightly into the woods.

"Farore, how did he ever put up with those weird little Kokiri…" I sighed, thinking about how he at least had people to grow up with. "He's luckier than he knows," I thought aloud.

"So are you." That was Sheik.

"How so?" I demanded, turning around.

"Well, for starters, you have all this stuff that you didn't have to risk your neck getting."

I laughed at that. "I just had to put up with Master for, oh, around 9 or 10 years."

"Except you've gotten away with some things."

"Such as?"

"Liam."

A guilty lump formed in my throat. "See?" Sheik said, "You have your secrets."

"Also," Sheik continued, "You occasionally have to do tasks for Ganondorf. However, the Hero of Time is constantly on the job, fighting for a good cause."

"So? Just knowing that he's always there, always watching…" I shivered. "It's not exactly comforting."

"And its not comforting for me know that you're still on my tail." He replied evenly.

I made a face. "I just wanted to ask you something," I lied.

He made a _go on _gesture with his hands. "Ask away."

"Oh.. um… I just wanted to know about you. Family, friends, the like. What its like to be a Sheikah… that sort of thing."

"Well," he said uncertainly, "the only family I've ever known were the Sheikah. And Impa. What its like to be a Sheikah… ask Liam. He's better at describing things than me, anyway."

"But I want to know from you!" I cried, stepping closer to Sheik as he stepped away - I didn't want him to disappear again.

"Too bad," He shrugged. "I answered, so now you have to stay away. If I catch you near me one more time - I don't care if it is an accident - then I'll be forced to fight you."

I stepped back in surprise. Sheik took the opportunity to be gone in a flash of white.

.

.

.

I raised the Ocarina to my lips. Tracking Sheik had been a lot harder after our meeting in the Lost Woods. I'd heard him play the Minute of the Forest. If I warped there now, would he still be in the area, and see me? I lowered the flute.

I concentrated, trying to use magic to find Sheik. I thought there was something at Lake Hylia… but no. That was just the Hero in the Water Temple.

I melted into the shadows and reappeared at the doorstep of the Forest Temple. I looked around.

Sheik wasn't here. Relieved, but annoyed that I could have just used the Ocarina, I leapt down from the broken steps. As my feet hit the ground, I heard a noise behind me. Quickly, I drew my sword and pivoted on my left heel, turning around just in time to block a sleek silver katana which had been bearing down on me with incredible speed.

"I told you to stay away!" Sheik cried, blocking my own instinctive attack.

"You didn't even give me time to ask why!" I replied.

Sheik started to roll his eyes, but in the middle of it, stopped and thrust at me. It was a good, solid thrust that probably would have gotten me if my reflexes were a fraction of a second slower. I felt the blade slice easily through my tunic, and even caught a bit of my skin. It stung, but started healing right away.

For some reason, this reminded me of my fight with Liam. I smiled grimly at that thought.

"Sheik, why are you doing this?" I asked as we continued to fight, exchanging lightning fast attacks.

"I already answered that." He parried my horizontal cut and tried to lop my head off my shoulders. I raised my shield to block that, and he used his left hand to reach into a pouch around his waist.

He pulled something out, but I barely registered that. His blade was flashing in the light that filtered through the trees as he attacked faster.

Suddenly there was a blinding white flash as Sheik threw a Deku Nut on the ground in front of me. I stumbled back from Sheik, shield raised for an attack - but I knew that wouldn't be enough to stop a Sheikah if he was intent on killing me.

I wiped the back of my my left hand - my sword hand - across my eyes, blinking to try and regain my sight. Right at that moment, Sheik kicked my shield away, which went spinning across the glade. Then he muttered "Sorry," and thrust his blade right into my stomach.

And he had sounded devastated.

"Ow," I croaked. My mouth seemed really dry, and had a bitter taste in it as Sheik walked away from me.

"I'm sorry, but… well… you're opposing the Hero, right? And that could only mean that you're one of Ganondorf's minions." He glared at me.

I glared right back at him. "I'd better go…I'll see you again, Sheik." I yanked the Ocarina out of my pouch, put it to my lips, and played the Serenade of Water - figuring that, after two days, the Hero has probably made it to the illusionary room.

And I'd had enough of Sheik. For now.


	7. Chapter 7

**Well... usually I don't update twice in one day, but I figured, "Why not?" So anyway, get ready for the extreme amount of angst. I think this is one of the most angst-filled chapters... So, here it is!**

**Disclaimer: Luckily for you, I don't own Legend of Zelda.**

Chapter Seven

I leapt into the dead tree at Lake Hylia, and came out of the other side of a dead tree - but this one was in the illusionary room. The room was called that because of the mist in it. The mist made it look like there were no walls, and that it just went on forever. However, the walls were still there - invisible, but still there.

I clutched my stomach. It was healing pretty slow. However, just because it can't kill me doesn't mean it doesn't hurt the same. I took a deep breath, slowly, wincing as the movement made my midsection move.

I bit my bottom lip, hard, as I took another breath. Then another. Gradually, the pain decreased. "Whew," I whispered, "Sheik sure knows how to put up a good fight."

"He must have," said Ivan, poking her head out of my hat, glancing around, then flying out and hovering in front of my face. "I mean… you're pretty fast."

I blinked once. Then twice.

Ivan… just _complimented_ me?

"Come on, idiot," she said, giving my nose a shove. "Ivan to Dark Link. Wake up!"

I blinked again. "Wow… that just happened."

"Yes. But it won't happen again if you get yourself killed."

"Is he almost here?" I asked excitedly.

"Yep."

I spun around to face the door he was going to be coming through.

It opened. Out of pure excitement, I hid myself inside the tree's shadow, watching him through eyes that couldn't be seen.

He stepped through the doorway. It closed behind him, and the click of the lock turning echoed around the room.

He pivoted on his right heel, trying the doorknob. Then, realizing it was locked, spun back around. He drew his sword, glaring warily at his surroundings. He took in the ankle-deep water on the floor, the little island with a dead tree in the center, the seemingly endless mist instead of walls, and the other door on the opposite side of the room.

He inched forward.

The he started walking as he realized nothing was going to happen. His guard was still up, I noted, but he was relaxing. He walked up to the tree. He touched it, hesitantly.

"Huh." I flinched as I heard his voice. It was… exactly like mine. He frowned at the dead tree, then kept walking. He walked up to the door. "That was too easy," he said. His voice echoed around the room. He suddenly spun around - and found himself looking into my red eyes.

"Hello, Hero." I said. His eyes widened.

"What the…" He unslung his shield from his back - at the exact same moment that I drew my sword and shield.

He took a step forward. I stood rock steady. He took another step. Slowly, he came closer and closer. Suddenly, I leapt forward and swung the anti-Master Sword at him - but wait - he leapt forward at the exact same moment.

Our blades clashed in midair. We both fell back, startled. The Hero recovered first. "Navi!" He shouted at his blue fairy. "How do I beat it?"

"Conquer yourself!" Navi told him - right as Ivan started hauling on my ear, trying to get my to stand up like the Hero. "Conquer yourself!" Ivan shouted at me, right as Navi said it.

"Interesting choice of words," I muttered, but quickly stood up.

We battled on for minutes - although it seemed like hours. Every time one of us - or, I guess, both of us - tried to attack, it ended up in a painful jolt up my sword arm. However, one of us could sometimes get away with our own little pattern, cause a minor cut, or, as it happened a couple of times, a mediocre hit.

"Farore," he muttered angrily at one point. "Who the heck _are_ you?"

A few jolts later, I reached into my pouch to pull a Sheik and throw some Deku Nuts. However, as soon as my sword arm dipped, the Hero lunged at me, and I had to throw myself sideways in order to save myself from being skewered again.

But he followed me, and, leaping forward quickly, he slashed at my legs and fell face first into the water - but jumped back away as soon as he got up.

I wasn't so lucky.

He managed to get the back of my right ankle - my thick boot helped retaliate a little bit, but the Master Sword sliced through it and hit the bone right above my ankle. Luckily, he'd been a little off balance when he made the swing, so it didn't cleave through entirely. I gasped and stumbled.

"Farore!" I shouted, nearly dropping my sword. I stumbled forward, away from him, and reached into my pouch. I pulled out some Deku Nuts, and instead of using them right then, I decided to wait and use them when I needed a diversion the most.

I went back to battling with the Hero. He was taking the moment to catch his breath and yell at Navi, which doesn't make sense. "Farore, Navi! Can't you give me _any_ helpful advice?" he said, slashing his sword across empty air to accentuate the point.

"Hey!" I yelled at him. "Farore is _my_ goddess. No one invoke's Farore's name but me."

"Oh yeah?" He challenged. "Well, Farore just happens to be goddess of courage. I'm courage boy." He held up his left hand, still clenched around his sword hilt, angrily. The Triforce mark on his hand glowed golden.

"Courage boy, eh?" I threw up my hand, too. "You got nothing on me. I'm the courage boy's shadow… which means I'm essentially the sa-" I never got to finish.

At that exact moment, he jumped at me and yelled, "DIN'S FIRE!" at the top of his lungs. I didn't have time to shout "woah!" much less to raise my shield, and even less time to back away. Because, right at that moment, a dome of fire exploded from him and expanded outwards, causing me to be blasted backwards and slam into the tree. For a moment, my eyesight was fuzzy.

Din's Fire. Oh, Farore. And, just to make sure Nayru didn't feel left out, I even muttered, "For the love of Nayru, when did he learn _that_?" And then, just as I had resolved to get up from the tree, I felt something slam painfully into the brace on my left arm.

I had just enough time to think "_hookshot_"when I was yanked ungracefully forward. The Hero, once I arrived, hauled me up so that we were face to face. His eyes smoldered with anger. "We are _not_ the same," he spat. "You're a lying, thieving coward, and I'm the Hero of Time. _Never_ say that again."

And then he hit my head as hard as he could with the pummel of his sword.

Everything turned black. I felt like I was hanging upside down - the blood was draining into my head. And then… nothing. When I woke up, it must have been a few seconds later, because he was walking away, towards the door that led to the next room. My ears were ringing, stars were dancing in front of my eyes - which wouldn't focus - and it all sounded underwater. Then I realized my one of my ears _was_ underwater.

Slowly, I stood up. He obviously heard the water dripping off me and hitting the ground. I staggered a half-pace towards him.

He glared at me. "Look, open the door! There's no need to keep me here. I won, fair and square. You just can't die."

My throat was dry, so that when I talked it was kind of like how a frog would talk - if frogs could talk, of course. "Say that again," I told him, cackling with maniacal laughter. "Come and say that to my face." I swayed.

Everything was deathly quiet. I remembered the words of the little Kokiri girl in the Lost Woods. Everybody will become a Stalfos. And thats how I felt - like I was slowly dying, and becoming a Stalfos.

He walked up to me, sword unsheathed. I was not about to let him get out of here, unscathed, while I was still breathing - even if I was breathing my last. He looked at me, straight in the eye, and said, "You're crazy."

I stumbled to the right as the world listed sideways. He aimed a kick at me to knock him over, but I took a step forward and he, not anticipating that I was going to pitch forward out of the way, fell forward, off balance a little bit. I took the opening to grab his shield, yank him around so that we were shoulder-to-shoulder, and then I attacked.

Off balance and shocked by the sheer force of my blows - which weren't as controlled as they usually were, thanks to my wounds - we fought each other. I grimaced every time our blades clanged together as we both tried a thrust or an overhand sweep.

So did he, which only served to make us both more angry.

I realized that I wasn't gripping my shield like I normally was - my fist was clenched around something else. My eyes opened a little wider as I realized that I was holding Deku Nuts. I glanced around for a spot where I could throw them on dry land; and saw none except for the two doors in my peripheral vision - which meant… the tree was right behind me. I gradually let him push me back, giving him ground little by little at first, then pretended to tire and gave him ground faster.

He probably got excited, and starting raining blows on me faster. I desperately tried to keep up to his speed.

I gave him more ground.

And just when I thought I was done for, my right foot crunched on the sand by the tree. I backed up more.

One more step. He pushed me forward a bit.

Wait for it…

NOW! I threw the Deku Nuts - three of them at the same time, which was definitely going to be louder and brighter - and made sure to turn away, close my eyes, and raise my shield so that I wasn't blinded, too.

"FARORE!" I heard the Hero bellow. I lowered my shield and saw him doing the exact same thing I did when Sheik threw them at me - wipe the back of his sword hand across his eyes.

I kicked his sword arm so that he stumbled back, and thrust. He cried out and fell to his knees as I pulled my sword back.

I staggered away from him, completely exhausted. I groaned and fell into the tree, transporting myself to the Shadow Temple - my favorite temple other than the Water Temple.

He was dead - and I felt horrible. I'd just basically killed myself. Aside from the fact that he'd beaten me up pretty bad first, the fact he'd died hung like storm cloud over my head, and weighed me down.

I felt like puking.

I crawled into a corner, waiting to die. Each breath rattled in my lungs. Every time I breathed out a painful breath, I knew the next I drew in could very well be my last. I closed my eyes, trying to blot out the pain. My gut felt all twisted.

Something was different. Something was missing; something was wrong. I racked my brain, trying to figure it out. I had to know. Before I died, I had to figure it out.

Then it suddenly struck me.

He was gone. Master wasn't there, in my head, giving me orders.

Because he expected me to die. A wicked grin came over my face. If I didn't die, that'd mean I would be freed… And then I blacked out.

I awoke to an ocarina playing. B, A, A, D, B, A, F. Someone walked into the room, and up to the door to the Shadow Temple, which was sealed. The green-clad figure had a shield on his back, a sword drawn, and a pointy green hat.

I almost passed out. He was good as new! How did the Hero survive? I shook my head angrily - well, tried to, anyway. It came out as more of a flip-flop of my head. He went to the center of the room, and stood on the raised platform. He looked around at the torches all around the room, his gaze mercifully missing me.

"How in Hyrule…" he muttered to himself, looking at the array of torches. I looked at him, and a little bit of my gut untwisted - but it still hurt.

I blinked a couple times as he sorted through his pouch, finally trying to start a fire with his Deku Sticks. Finally, when I couldn't stand it any longer, and I realized that Master - _no, Ganondorf_ I thought with some conviction - would never know, I quietly said, "Din's Fire."

He looked up, sharply, at the sound of his own voice. Then his expression hardened as he realized that, since it was me, I was still alive and had survived our previous encounter.

"You," he said darkly.

"Me," I agreed meekly.

"What do you want?" he demanded roughly. "And why are you here?"

"I came here after I thought I killed you. This place… my second favorite temple, and the Water Temple was just plain irritating, reminding me of you."

His gaze softened ever so slightly as he noticed my wounds.

"And I already told you what I want" -I coughed weakly- "Din's Fire."

"You want Din's Fire?" Now he just looked angry as well as confused.

"No," I rolled my eyes, "I want you to use Din's Fire to light all the torches at once."

"Why are you helping me?" He inquired.

Truth be told, I wasn't all to sure myself. I told him just that. He laughed a little bit and came over to me. His presence was distracting, I realized. With him being my counterpart - or my being his, I thought wryly - it was hard to focus on anything but him.

"I had a fairy spirit," he told me. "Now I feel like I was cheating."

"Like a true Gerudo."

"Except I'm their number-one enemy."

Oh. "Good point," I muttered.

There was a silence, which he ended when he said, "I think I have a couple fairy spirits left," he reached into his pouch, pulling out a bottle with a trapped fairy in it.

But I declined the offer by saying, "Nah, you'll probably need it to save yourself, you-"

"-big, lazy, idiot." He finished my sentence perfectly. My lips twitched into a smile.

"Anyway," he said, "here." And he unstoppered the lid to the bottle, not giving me time to reject it again.

The fairy zipped out of the bottle as fast as possible, and looked around for someone or some_thing_ to heal. The Hero pointed at me. "He needs saving," he told her severely. She looked at me incredulously, up and down, and then flew out the door into the Kakariko Graveyard.

"Hey, wait!" He called, and ran towards the door, waving the bottle. "Come back!" After standing there uncertainly for a few seconds, he came back over to me and said, "So… you can die?"

I looked away from him. "Your sword, the Master Sword, is the only weapon that can actually kill me or give me a lasting wound. However, when we were fighting, anything you did, I had to counter as if it would hurt me - because it would. I think that was just because it was… you know, _you_."

He suddenly found the hem of his tunic extremely interesting.

"Not…" I tried unsuccessfully to clear my throat. "...your fault. I attacked first."

"But," he gestured helplessly at my wounds, "how is this _not_ my fault?"

I stared up and the ceiling, until I broke out in a fit of coughing. He moved as if to help me, but I waved him off.

The coughing didn't stop. I doubled over. Finally, when it did, I reached up and wiped a hand across my face. It came back wet and red. I straightened. Then I put out my right arm, felt a crack in the wall, and started using that to haul myself upright.

The Hero reached out, grabbing my elbow to steady my arm.

Scorching, searing pain coursed through my body. I cried out and fell to the ground in agony. Everything around me tilted sideways, flashed red, then black, and then it all disappeared.

I regained consciousness. I was dimly aware of a presence to my left. I groaned and lifted my heavy eyelids. "You're awake!" he - the Hero - cried. I noticed he looked a bit tired.

"Maybe…" I glanced around and also realized that he'd managed to light all the torches. Now the Temple door would be opened… Must be why he was tired...

Suddenly my eyes flew open all the way, and I gasped. "The Temple!" I told him urgently. "In the Temple, you'll have to fight Bongo Bongo!"

"So?" His eyebrows narrowed. He probably knew that I was on my deathbed, and that what I was saying was key information.

"To… to beat Bongo Bongo, you can stun him with your arrows by shooting his hands. And… like a lot of enemies, his eye is his weak spot. Hit him there."

He nodded. "Go!" I commanded weakly. "Only two temples left… And there's nothing you can do for me." He nodded again. Then Navi came out from underneath _his_ hat and said, "Come on, Link, we really do have to go."

He moistened his lips as he looked at me one last time. "Well… okay. I'll see you, Dark Link."

"Yeah." I swallowed. "See you 'round."

Then the Hero, looking determined, stepped into the Shadow Temple.

And the world spun out.

Pain.

That was the first thing I became aware of.

Music was next.

Music was countering the pain. It was filling up my consciousness, softly stroking my cheek with it's tiny hand… wait. I cracked an eye open.

Nope. That was Ivan, perched on my shoulder like she owned it. But the music was still there...and slowly, the pain started dissipating. Slowly, but surely.

"He's awake," Ivan whispered to… herself?

The music stopped. Pain flared from my ankle all the way to my head. My eyes fluttered open and I heard a familiar voice say, "How are you feeling?"

"Uh… like my foot's been cut off. How about you?"

"Like I just played music for you."' said Sheik.

"Wow, what…" I paused to catch my breath. "What a surprise."

He peered at me, clearly concerned. "Out of breath already?" He asked me.

I gave a feeble laugh. "Only because your attitude is so… breathtakingly irritating."

"Irritating?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Yep," I told him.

He helped me sit up, careful not to touch my skin.

Suddenly I heard a sinister, high-pitched evil laugh.

"It's a poe!" I shouted at Sheik as I threw my hand behind my back, yanked out my shield, and set it up in front of us. I heard the _clank! _as it's lantern struck the metal surface.

Sheik lept up and pulled out his katana. "There's three of them," he told me grimly. "You stay here." Once again, I noticed how his voice was high-pitched.

"I want to help!" I told him, clawing at the wall for a handhold so I could stand up.

"No!" He shouted, thrusting at a poe - and hit it - but after he hit it, it disappeared and reappeared behind him.

Only one thing to do - I couldn't draw my sword, much less use it - so I threw my shield desperately at it.

It struck home - but, when the poe disappeared and died after the hit, the shield kept going just a little bit and hit Sheik in back, knocking him off balance. The poes laughed again and flew towards him.

So I jumped in the way.

It felt like I was being ground into itty bitty pieces. I never knew those lanterns could hurt so much. I heard Sheik play the Serenade of Water, felt him grab my hand (how could I not), and then we disappeared.

And reappeared. At Lake Hylia. I tore myself out of his grip, scrambled away from him, and propped myself up, back to the old gravestone - which was on the opposite side of the mini-island with the dead tree.

I took in a shuddering breath, and blew out unsteadily.

The day was so bright…Until Sheik got up. Then everything seemed to darken as he glared at me. Suddenly, I felt about as big as my pinky finger.

"What were you _doing_ back there?" He demanded. "Do you have a death wish?"

"I was saving your sorry hide," I shot back.

"Why," he said slowly, "did you even try? I had it under control!"

"You had it handled? If that was 'under control' then I'd like to see it when you don't have it under control." I paused, rubbing my aching head, then started again. "Actually, I wouldn't like to see that."

"So? I trying to save your life!"

"And I was trying to return the favor!"

"Oh yeah?" He challenged. "You have a funny way of returning favors, I must say. I'd never have thought that repaying the person taking care of you would include - hmm, let's see - jumping on top of them to make their job harder, disobeying them, and we can't forget talking back!"

"You make it sound as if you're my _mother._"

His stance became more erect at that. "Excuse me?"

I rolled my eyes. "It's not like you _have_ to help me, you know. You can stop mother-henning me and go… be a Sheikah. Which," I added as the thought struck me, "probably means you'll try to kill me again, since I'm interfering with the Hero. Now's the best chance - I'm weakened, half dead anyway, and don't have a shield." I cocked my head to one side expectantly and had a sarcastic, pained smile on my face.

He sighed with frustration. "I'd love to kill you, seriously. You deserve to die. But Link made me promise-"

"Woah, hold up!" Ivan popped out from under my hat. "Link made you promise? But he's in the Shadow Temple!"

"Well, he came out," Sheik said, glaring at her. She just glared right back, hands on her little hips, red eyes glaring. "And he pretty much ordered me to come right over to the Shadow Temple and look after you. He told me that if I didn't, he would, and that Bongo Bongo would probably escape again." He shook his head angrily and muttered, "Stubborn, pigheaded idiot."

"Sounds like you," I cleared my throat, which was dry again.

Ivan snorted, crossed her arms and said, "Hah. Yeah right. Sounds more like _you_."

"Ouch," I told her, "except he _is_ me."

"Technically," Sheik said, "you're him." I frowned.

"Well… I'd better be going." I turned so that my back was facing Sheik and I could grab the edge of the grave with my hands and push. As I did, I heard Sheik inhale rather sharply.

I winced loudly as I straightened my back, reaching a hand behind to… I don't know, placate it? It was more instinctive than anything else. But that just made it worse.

I stumbled to my left as the world tipped. Everything blurred - Sheik just a blue and white blob, and Ivan just a floating, blurry red circle hovering nearby. Someone tried to say something, but it sounded underwater.

It's not that anything hurt, it just… didn't feel right. I stumbled into Sheik. He caught me, naturally. That snapped me out of it. Every inch of me seared with pain. I leaned heavily on him - he stepped back and helped me step forward so that I was leaning against the tree. I'd never realized how delicate his frame was. I shifted uncomfortably.

"Ivan!" He said, once again in that high voice. "Stay here and make sure he doesn't wander off."

"Yes, sir!"

He leaned in and said to me, "I'll be right back. Just hang in there."

And then sprinted off. I hung there for what seemed like an eternity before he came sprinting back.

"Eat this," he said, shoving something into my mouth. it was disgusting, and hard to chew, and there was no way I was going swallow that. I checked to make sure Sheik wasn't looking, then spit it into the lake quietly.

"That was nasty," I told Sheik. "Can I have some water to wash it down with?"

"No," he said shortly.

"What was it?" I peered into the lake it the floating thing. It looked like something… moving... wrapped in a leaf or something.

"It was a leaf - I forget what the leaf's called - with some worms wrapped in it."

I blinked.

"They're quite hard to come by. I had to, ah, convince the Lake Scientist to let me use it. Anyway, I'm going to have to inject a sleeping potion into your veins." He held up a needle. "It works in conjunction with the worm guts."

"Ah." My mouth was suddenly very dry. "That… makes sense. What happens if the worms aren't eaten first?"

"Not sure." That was comforting. But I guess he didn't know…"Why?" He looked up briefly from what he was doing.

"Nothing," I replied quickly. Too quickly.

"You spit it out, didn't you?"

"Nope!"

"I thought as much. Good thing I got two." He reached behind me, pulled out another one, and shoved it in my mouth, and clamped it shut this time. I shoved him off, ignoring the flaring pain as my hand slipped down his arm and collided with his exposed fingers.

Then swallowed.

"Open your mouth." He said sternly. I rolled my eyes but obliged. I felt like a small child.

"Okay," he said, taking a deep breath, "this is going to hurt."

"I'm used to it."

He raised an eyebrow, but plunged the needle into my arm, released the potion, and pulled it out again.

"I don't _think_ I missed," he said doubtfully.

"Have you ever dealt with needles before?"

"I did have a couple of embroidery lesso-" Suddenly he stopped. His face burned red.

"_Embroidery lessons?_" I exploded.

"No! I meant my little sister's embroidery lessons," he said. But I could tell he was lying.

"Uh-huh. Suuure you were." I went to cross my arms, but that pulled at my back muscles and hurt like crazy. I winced and stopped.

"Let me work on that." He wouldn't meet my gaze.

He started maneuvering around me. "Woah, wait a second," I said, grabbing his arm. "You owe me an explanation for lying to me, okay?"

He was still looking away. "I already gave an explanation. And… I wasn't lying."

"Look at me and say that," I challenged him. I knew he couldn't do it, and was surprised when he looked up.

"I already told you."

I let go. "Just tell me the truth," I begged. "Ganondorf can't hear anymore. He thinks I'm dead. So I'm free. Please," I looked at him. "Please just give me a straight answer for once."

He bit the bottom of his lip. "...Okay. I've never told anyone before..."

"I grew up in Hyrule Castle," he said. "I… I'm actually a good friend of Princess Zelda's."

"You?" I asked incredulously. "No way."

"Yes way!" He shot back. "Just because I'm a Sheikah…Well.. I'll start there I guess. I'm not really a Sheikah, either."

"You're... not?" I asked uncertainly.

"Nope." He finished dressing my ankle wound - he was a lot faster than Kelly, I noted - and got to work on the scrape on my side. "I'm actually a noble girl, which is where the embroidery comes in."

"Oh," I paused for a moment, and then the full meaning of what he - er, she, I guess - just said hit me. "WAIT. _WHAT?_"

She wrung her hands. "I… I'm a girl. A noble girl, and I was taught embroidery."

"How…?" I was so startled that I could barely speak.

She cleared her throat. "Uh… I went into hiding, and decided that it'd be best if I wasn't a girl, in case Ganondorf… you know, wanted to capture me."

My mouth hung open.

And then I collapsed.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey! Here's chapter eight. There are only three more chapters... and a short epilogue left. It's so weird to think the story is almost over. Anyway, enjoy chapter eight, and don't forget to review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda.**

**-SM**

Chapter Eight

I woke up, once again, to Sheik's lyre. _She _was strumming various chords on it, but stopped when she realized I was awake. I realized I was laying down - at that it was night. My head was on her lap as she sat with her back against the dead tree.

Suddenly it occurred to me that I probably shouldn't lay on a noble. I started to sit up, but Sheik gently pushed me back down. "It's okay," she said in an amused voice. "You need your rest."

"So that's why you sometimes talked in a high voice," I mused aloud.

"Still in shock, huh?" she said.

"Apparently. It's a little bit… Well, its not easy to take on the news that you're a… girl."

"Well, now I know how Link will act when I tell him. He'll pass out."

"He doesn't know?"

"Only you, me, and Impa know." she said. "And make sure it stays that way."

"Is that an order?" I asked her.

"No." She laughed. She had a nice, clear laugh.

I realized, as I looked closer at her face, that the white shawl usually hiding the bottom half of her face was gone. When I asked where it was, she just said, "It was getting stuffy in there. Also, we ran out of bandages. And I needed to use something to stop the bleeding for the minor cuts, which can heal on their own." She held up her white shawl, which now had red stains on it.

"Oh…sorry."

"It's okay. No need to apologize. I said, it was stuffy." She traced her fingers along my tunic absently. I sat up.

"So, tell me about you," she said.

'Well… there's not much to tell. Only people to talk about are Kelly, her little brother, James, Liam… and you," I started uncertainly. "Take your pick."

"How about we start off with Kelly and James?"

So I took a deep breath and told her about how we ran into each other, Kelly cared for me, we went to the Gerudo Fortress… and everything after that. "So then," I said, "I woke up, and I saw Anju crying, James sitting on the bed, and Liam with his arm around Kelly."

"Wait," she said. "Now tell me about Liam."

I rolled my eyes. "Sheesh, you're demanding. 'Tell me this, tell me that,'" I mimicked, as she laughed.

"So, ah, basically, Liam Curr is… sort of the last person in his family."

She raised an eyebrow. "Sort of?"

"Well, he has an older brother, but nobody knows where he went."

"Oh."

"Anyway, he scored a big hit for the Sheikah against Ganondorf. So Ganondorf wanted him killed, and sent me to do it."

"And you failed?" She asked.

"You sound hopeful," I laughed. "No. What happened was I walked in, told him I was a messenger, we argued for a little bit, he stabbed me with his knife - clever little Sheikah - and I fell to the floor. He hauled me up off the floor and we talked a bit more. I told him I promised not to kill him if he laid low. He exploded with anger, and I took off through the shadows. This was all in the Sheikah Caverns."

Silence. I looked over at her for the first time since I started telling her about Liam. She was also staring out at the horizon. I thought about taking her hand, but decided against it.

"And then I had a dream…" I told her about the weird dream where I was Ramian.

"That's odd," she told me. "Usually, you wake up and know at some point or another, with crystal clarity, that it was a dream. And in this case, since it was real, you were either experiencing Ramian's memories, or… or they're yours."

"But they're not my memories!" I exclaimed.

"Okay, then in that case you were just remembering something someone else did."

"Does that happen often?" I asked her.

"I've never heard of it," she admitted.

"Oh." We sat in silence for awhile, until I broke it by asking her, "So… how were the embroidery lessons?"

She smirked. "I only had a few before Ganondorf attacked and drove us out of the castle."

"Us? And I thought he captured everyone, not drove them out. The only person he chased was Princess Zelda and Impa, her attendant - hey, wait a second," I said after a moment. "You said Impa knows? Er, knew?"

"Well," she said quickly,"I told Impa later, after she warned me to hide and escape the castle. This was right as Ganondorf broke into the castle I… I was only just able to make it out."

I gazed into her eyes, which held a mixture of fear and fury. I reached out and put my arm around her, drawing her close to me. I looked up at the stars, until I heard her sniff. I looked back at her. She had tears streaming down her face, but she made no move to wipe them away. She just looked off into the distance, at the moon. "The guards tried to protect me… and… they…" She buried her head in my shoulder.

I wrapped her up in my arms and murmured comforting things to her. "It's okay," I told her gently at one point. "I'm here, I've got you, and everything is going to be alright…"

"No," she whispered suddenly. "Things won't be okay, until Link defeats Ganondorf. _Then_ everything will be alright…"

I wiped her tears away with the dirty shawl, careful not to touch her. "Until then, we'll have to keep you safe, okay?"

She nodded like a small child. "Okay."

I brushed her blond bangs away from her eyes, which were red like a normal Sheikah. "What's your real name?" I asked her. "Sheik just… doesn't suit you now."

"My name is" -she looked deep into my eyes- "Clarinda."

We stood up. She had a firm grip on my arm brace - careful not to touch my skin. At that moment I hated Ganondorf so much it hurt. I wanted to hold her hand… so much. "I have to go," she said, almost like a question. Like she was asking if it was okay. I smiled at her a little bit.

"Okay…" and I wrapped my right arm around her waist, pulling her close and staring into her eyes… I never noticed how her beautiful her eyes were… she stepped forward.

Her eyes closed. So so did mine. Our lips met; she had the softest lips. And that was the single, briefest, happiest moment I'd ever experienced. But I barely noticed. I was using all my self-control to keep myself from pulling away - apparently the curse laid by Ganondorf was still in effect.

She pulled away and looked down. "I… I have to go." She looked… guilty, almost. "I'm so, so sorry," she said.

"Don't be," I told her with a gentle, crooked smile.

"I…" she backed away from me. "I'll see you around… Dark Link." And then, in a flash of light, she was gone.

I sat down hard, my back against the dead tree. I reached my right hand up and touched the each of the three claw marks on the tree. I closed my eyes and thought back to the day those marks were made.

I had been over with the Gorons at Death Mountain when the first event took place. I was climbing around the mountains, when I found a cave - more like an opening on the back side of Death Mountain, with pools of lava everywhere - and a huge, snake-like dragon curled up in one of them.

I was so surprised it was there.

To make a long story short, Volvagia chased me out of his cave when I accidentally woke him up. I warped to Lake Hylia, to this exact spot - and sat down next to this tree, staring at the rising sun.

Funny, the sun was going to rise soon to mark the dawn of a new day.

Well, anyway, as I sat here, the Lake Scientist's wife came out - she was nice, and since I was only an 11-year old kid, she pitied me. So she came over with a sandwich and offered me some. I took it, naturally - shadow food isn't very satisfying.

We sat there for a couple hours. I should have known not to stay in one place for too long, because Volvagia was still after me. But she was nice. I think her name was Clarinda. Huh. Just like Sheik.

Interesting. Well, anyway, Volvagia came back here, and Clarinda saw him coming towards us. We were looking at our reflections in the water, and occasionally throwing bread for the fish in the lake. She shoved me into the tree, which wasn't dead at that time and she wasn't quick enough to get out of the way.

Volvagia hit her. She screamed, and the Lake Scientist hurled out his front door just in time to see Volvagia slam into her and knock her off the edge of the island. Then both of them - Volvagia and the Lake Scientist - looked at me murderously.

Volvagia attacked me; I tried desperately to block with my short little sword - and wooden shield, which ended up catching fire and burning into ashes.

I stood up again, using the tree for support as I recalled the stink of Volvagia's breath and that battle, so many years ago. I drew the anti-Master Sword and took up a battle stance, sans shield - I didn't have one now, or then.

Volvagia had flown around, his body blotted out the sun - he tried to burn me up, but I rolled to the side - straight into his hide. I was saved for the moment, but he got ready to blow fire again - and this time I had nowhere to run. So I sat there, wide-eyed - until the Lake Scientist chucked something (who knows what) at the dragon, which roared, and for a split second forgot about me. He turned and shot toward the Lake Scientist, who stood there petrified like me.

I jumped onto Volvagia's back, and struck it as hard as I could with my little, itsy bitsy sword. _I had been so disappointed when it didn't bite through his scales,_ I thought to myself. But then he threw me off his back - I went higher, and higher - and then started falling.

I fell, and by pure luck it was right on Volvagia's head. It hurt like crazy, and I remember hearing a rib cage and I think the bone protecting my spine crack. I definitely felt it.

Apparently he felt something, too, because he reared, throwing me off his head and into the lake. As my bones mended, I drifted back towards the island with the tree. As I got there, I pulled Clarinda onto the island again. Everything was healed by that point. Volvagia, as I dripped water everywhere, turned towards me and roared. He tried to blow fire but just blew sparks.

I laughed, which probably didn't improve his mood. Anyway, he took a swipe before flying off back to his cave at Death Mountain.

And that was why the claw marks were on the tree, and the grave was next to it. The grave for Clarinda.

Clarinda was such a pretty name. I sighed and sat down in a little nook that the tree roots made. The tree was long dead, now, thanks to the fire Volvagia had blown. I had carried Clarinda's charred body back to the Lake Scientist.

Which is really why he hates me so much. So, yes, I lied to James. But it was a good thing… right?

I closed my eyes. But something shifted. I opened them - only to find the world was dissolving - I was being wrapped in shadows…

Almost like… like I was portaling to the Dark Realm. But I hadn't caused that portal to appear…

Oh no.

I appeared back in the Dark Realm, inside of Ganondorf's Castle. I ground my teeth together as I saw the tall, cloaked figure standing in front of me, yelling at a couple of Stalfos. His back was turned. They chattered uncertainly. Then one of them pointed behind him at me. Ivan slipped out from under my hat and flew away. Way to encourage me. Some fairy, I thought to myself. Then all thoughts of Ivan vanished when Ganondorf spun around.

He saw me. "Leave," he snapped at the two Stalfos.

I tried to swallow the lump that had formed in my throat, unsuccessfully. "You," he sneered at me. "You're a weakling and an idiot."

I just glared at him. "And you're a coward and a pig. That is," I added after a moment, "a stubborn, pig_headed_ idiot."

He drew his wicked-looking sword. "I think you're quite acquainted with her, aren't you?" he asked me, running his finger along the edge of the blade. I drew the anti-Master Sword.

"And I think you're familiar with _her?_"

But he only laughed. "That blade is the opposite of the legendary Master Sword, which means it effectively does the opposite - strengthens evil, instead of destroying it. You should know about that, with all the time you've spent away from home." As he said "home" he gestured around to the midnight-black palace.

"This was never my home," I told him. "This was my prison."

He raised an eyebrow. "Well then, tell me about the world outside your 'prison.'"

The imbecile was trying to get information! Well, how about that. "Uh… there's nothing of interest. It's just… more homely."

"Homely?" the word sounded strange coming from Ganondorf's mouth.

"Yep."

"How about the people there? What about the one who killed you?"

My jaw dropped. How did he know? I thought… I thought he was gone! Well… I guess he was still there during the battle with the Hero. Or was he talking about the one with Sheik? "I… I never died!" I told him.

He reached out a hand and closed my mouth. I shuddered as we touched, and backed away a step. "Or how about all those meetings with Sheik?" he whispered to me.

"Sheik…" I muttered. I had to protect her. Er, him? Ganondorf _can't_ find out. "I just met with him and talked."

"About what?" he pried.

"Nothing," I snapped at him. "She - he, that is - just gave me some medicine to drink. Worm guts or something weird like that."

"She?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes. "He! Sorry. I had been thinking about Clarinda when you pulled me back here." _That_ was close.

"It was close?" He asked me. My eyes widened. Then I blinked and they went back to normal.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded, my mind racing.

He strode toward me. I backed away uncertainly - until felt the coolness of the palace walls behind me. I stood there, frozen, as he approached. He reached out a hand. I brandished my sword. "Stay away," I warned him in a low voice. but then our eyes met and I dropped the sword. It clattered on the ground. I started to wonder why it didn't disappear, but then stopped as Ganondorf's hand touched my forehead.

"Let go of your emotions," he commanded in a soothing voice. I never knew he could have such a soft touch, or such a soft voice. Like… a father… he just wanted to help…

I let go of everything and melted into his presence. I let go of feelings, and thoughts, and secrets.

I let go of Sheik. It can't bother me now, I thought… suddenly, a shock wave rolled throughout the whole Realm. It sliced through the spell Ganondorf had put on me. I looked at him in horror. I'd… I'd told him about Sheik! Now he knew.

He turned and looked at me. His face was filled with hatred. "You knew all along, didn't you?" he demanded.

"Knew… what?" I asked him, trying to squirm my way out of this.

"You knew who she was."

"Well… after the fight in the Water Temple, yes."

He glared at me even more now.

"And you… stayed with her for practically a whole day! When you knew what she could have done to you…"

Now I was just plain confused. "What? She's a noble. Whoop-dee-doo! So?"

"So?!" He shouted, looking a little bit confused. That made me feel good. "_So?!_ The Seventh Sage and you say, '_So?'_"

"HOLD UP!" I yelled. "CLARINDA IS THE_ SEVENTH SAGE?!_"

So, there are seven Sages, who are basically just people - one from each race, I'm pretty sure. So far, the Hero had rescued four of the seven Sages. The only ones left: the Shadow Sage, in the Shadow Temple, the one in the Spirit Temple, and… Princess Zelda. The Seventh Sage. Problem with her was that if I ever ran into her, she could dissolve me completely, and utterly, with just a thought. They were there to help the Hero defend Hyrule from evil people - like me and Ganondorf.

Ganondorf blinked. "Clarinda?"

Relief flooded back into me. He wasn't talking about Clarinda. "Nothing," I said quickly.

But then he laughed. "Oh, so _that's_ what she told you, eh? She told you her name was Clarinda? How original. And I suppose she told you this at Lake Hylia? Next to the _real_ Clarinda's grave?"

My eyebrows furrowed. "But…they have matching names. So? That, uh… happens. A lot."

"Like when?"

"Like… me and the Hero. And, um…"

"Go on."

"Link and Goron Link!"

He gave me such an evil look I don't even know how to describe it. Then, faster than lightning, he drew his sword and sliced as fast as he could at me. I nimbly danced out of the way, only just managing to dodge the sharp, well-oiled blade.

However, my hand wasn't as lucky as the rest of me. His sword hit the tip of my three middle fingers on my left hand. The burning pain it caused was so bad that I wished I had my sword, because I could probably have beaten Ganondorf right then, no Hero necessary.

I snatched it up with my right hand, determined I could do it. I'm the shadow, right? So… I can do it. Ganondorf started raining blows on me - and he was so quick that even I had trouble keeping up with him. He managed to get some cuts in on me, but my resolve to beat him kept me going.

But that resolve crumbled when Ivan saw us fighting. She zipped over as fast as she could…

...and perched herself on Ganondorf's shoulder. She whispered something to him, and an evil grin lit up his features.

"Ivan?" I said, feeling thoroughly betrayed. "It was you… all along? You were informing Ganondorf of my every move... weren't you?"

"Yes," she replied simply. But instead of being angered, that just broke my heart. I felt like a dagger was slowly working its way to my heart, and it had finally found its mark.

So I turned away from Ganondorf.

And I ran. As fast as I could.

In the opposite direction.

Hoping against hope that Ganondorf wasn't a very fast runner. I'd forgotten that he could hover. And he can hover pretty darn fast when he needs to. He chased me down and cut my ankle with his excessively large sword - my right ankle.

The old wound ached, but stars exploded in front of my eyes as I stumbled, went a couple more steps - and fell. Off the cliff that Ganondorf's castle in the Dark Realm sat on and into the plateau below.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi. So, I'm updating again. Did I already update today? *thinks about it* Hummm... I'm not sure. Anyway, I got a review (yay!) and decided to finish churning this out. Sorry it's a but short, but it had to be separate from everything. So, like always, enjoy the read!**

**Disclaimer: I only own the OCs, not Zelda.**

**-SM**

Chapter Nine

Ganondorf had me. I could barely walk, much less raise my sword against him. Now… there is nothing left. I hardly even have a physical form. My life is virtually tied up with his - wherever he is, I am, and whatever he sees, I see.

And right now, we were in the Temple of Time. Watching the Hero. He was walking towards the door, when he suddenly stopped.

Sheik was there. At the doorway. "Link," she said in her manly voice. "You have overcome many hardships and awakened six Sages. And now you have a final challenge, a showdown with Ganondorf, the King of Evil" -at this part Ganondorf almost laughed with glee at his title- "however, you cannot defeat him with just the six Sages. You need the Seventh Sage to help you; the Sage who holds the Triforce of Wisdom, and is destined to be the leader of them all…"

Suddenly, a white light shone forth from Sheik. Link held up his arm to block out the light, but couldn't see through it.

The light died. A beautiful woman stood in Sheik's place - she had a long pink gown on, golden hair pushed back, and the most beautiful face I'd ever seen.

It was Clarinda.

Only... without layers of dirt, and transformed into the beauty she actually was. Her power as a Sage radiated throughout the room.

"It is I," she announced, holding up a slender left hand. The Triforce mark glowed on it as she continued, "I, the Princess of Hyrule, Zelda. I… apologize for meeting you in disguise, but it was necessary to hide from the King of Evil. Please forgive me. I waited for seven years as you were trapped. And now, the Sages will, all together, seal the door to the Dark Realm, with Ganondorf trapped in it. However, in order to do this, we will need your courage again. Please protect me while I do my part."

Suddenly, she pulled out an arrow and fit it into the Hero's hands. "This is the only weapon that can penetrate the Evil King's defenses. The power given to the chosen ones is the sacred Arrow of Light!" Navi flew aimlessly around the Hero's head. They both ignored her. However, she reminded me painfully of Ivan.

Suddenly, Ganondorf made his presence known. A rumbling filled the Temple. "That noise… it can't be?" Princess Zelda exclaimed.

Ganondorf called on me for extra power. Looking at Zelda, who deceived me twice, I lent all my anger and hatred to Ganondorf. _She deserves it,_ I thought.

The world suddenly had a pinkish hue to it; everything did. But then it solidified as a crystal around the Princess. The Hero shouted, "NO!" and ran forward, but there was nothing to do. She was trapped, frozen in place.

"Princess Zelda…" Ganondorf's voice boomed. "You foolish traitor. I commend you for avoiding my pursuit for seven long years. But you let your guard down… I knew you would appear if I let this kid wander around! My only mistake was to slightly underestimate the power of this kid…"

Zelda stirred and cried out. The Hero's anguish showed clearly on his face as he tried to reach through the crystal, but to no avail. My own heart tore yet again as I heard Zelda. The crystal rose in the air as Ganondorf said, "No… it was not the kid's power I misjudged, but the power of the Triforce of Courage. But, with the Triforce of Wisdom that Zelda has… When I obtain these two Triforces… Then, I will become the true ruler of the world! If you want to rescue Zelda," he said darkly, "come to my castle!" Then he laughed crazily.

And Zelda disappeared. I mentally tore myself away from Ganondorf. I was shocked… I'd given him power to do _that?_ Purposefully?

I found my body. It was next to Ganon's Castle, on the edge, as if someone had tossed it there and forgotten about it. I frowned. How rude. I slipped inside it an immediately lost consciousness.

.

.

.

Water. Wet, and cool.

That's what I felt. I groaned. My head ached with pain, and I felt so drained of energy. My left hand hurt like crazy, and my head wasn't even on a pillow, it was on a rocky, hard ground. I groaned and tried to roll over.

"Woah!" I said. But wait… I didn't talk. So… my voice talks on its own? I opened my eyes blearily.

Oh, yeah.

The Hero crouched in front of me, one hand clenched on the front of my tunic. His face reflected a fiery red. "You almost rolled off the edge," he told me.

My brow furrowed. "Where are we?" I asked him.

"At Ganon's Castle," he told me grimly.

"Oh…"

"Yeah." There was a pause.

"Well… I wish I could help-" I started to say, but he cut me off.

"No. You stay here. You've done enough." I knew enough about myself to not to argue.

"Well, then, good luck."

"Thanks."

He helped me stand up. I lurched over to rock, a little bit further from the edge. I leaned against it heavily. I drew breath to ask him a question about Sheik, but suddenly got the wind knocked out of me as I flew off the rock. Pain rippled through my body as I heard a voice say, "Link… can you hear me? It's Rauru, the Sage. We six will gather out power to create a bridge to the castle where Ganondorf dwells. Ganondorf is in the castle's keep, which is known as Ganon's Tower."

A blinding light appeared, which seared through my body. I staggered backwards. My left foot went behind me and stepped on… nothing.

The pit.

The Hero lunged forward and caught my hand - I shouted out loud - and he quickly pulled me back up. I pressed a hand to my side. I could feel blood slipping down where my old wound was. "I think I reopened something," I told him. "But you need to go…"

"I… but…"

"I'll be fine. Where's Na… Navi?"

Navi came out. "Yes?" She asked me hesitantly. I could tell I still freaked her out.

"If you see… Ivan… give her a good punch from me, okay?" I asked her, gasping for breath.

"Um," she looked at the Hero, who nodded, and then said, "okay."

And then I fell back, exhausted from all the effort. The Hero lingered for a moment longer, but then finally took off up the bridge, sword drawn, and charged into Ganon's Castle.

.

.

.

There was something there.

Something that sounded like a thousand Gorons falling off of Death Mountain. I'm not sure how long it went on - it felt like an eternity.

Then everything was silent; until I heard a voice, which sounded like Zelda, say, "It's over… It's finally over…"

Something happened, and she gasped. Then there was this roaring noise… and with a battle cry, I heard my voice charge into battle. I sank deeper, coming closer… and closer… to death.

_Come here,_ said a voice through the darkness.

Mentally, I tried to pry myself away from his commanding voice. I was so tired, and… death was so nice. But my eyes fluttered open and I stood up. _Come… help,_ said the voice.

_I'm coming… _I thought sleepily. I had to fight with my voice.

I stumbled forward, drawing my sword, crying out, and switching it to my right hand. I saw a figure in front of me… vaguely, it looked a bit pink.

I realized there were flames surrounding… something else. This was the only person outside of the flames, other than me, but…

_Is this the enemy?_ I thought uncertainly as my half-open eyes blinked.

_Yes. Kill him, _responded the voice. That was all that was there. Just the voice, the figure, the flames, and me.

I raised my sword with a grunt and thrust at the figure. He dodged out of the way, crying out and turning. I looked… and saw… the most beautiful eyes… they reminded me of… Clarinda…but wait. Clarinda was Zelda...

I swung again. This time, he - or maybe it was…a she? - ducked, then stepped forward and laid a hand on my forehead.

The pain that had been in every inch of my body caught fire again, and kept increasing, until I fell back, mercifully losing consciousness.

I awoke, just in time to hear the Hero say, in a strangled voice filled with so much pain, "I will... win..." I opened my eyes and saw a grotesque scene in front of me. Princess Zelda was sobbing, as she watched Ganondorf… wait. That was the same essence, but a different form… he was huge. His enormous figure dwarfed the little, green clad figure on the ground that he stood over. His sword was raised as he cackled with delight, his archenemy unconscious on the ground before him, and the Sages powerless.

They were standing amidst piles of rubble, where Ganon's Castle used to be. Vaguely, I wondered what happened to the huge, black castle. I looked closer to the scene and realized The Hero had lost his hat. I frowned. That hat was really dear to me - at least, mine was. I always got angry when my hat got knocked off.

So I got angry. Because I'm _him, _right?

I ran, faster than I probably should have with my limp, and stood over top of him, blocking the huge sword, and using every ounce of my strength to hold up the anti-Master Sword. I had it in a two-handed grip, still with no shield, because I knew I couldn't hold it otherwise.

As his blade struck mine, the sound of metal clashing on metal rolled out all around me - and I could feel Ganon's hatred.

Through clenched teeth, I told him, "I… am… not… your… puppet!" And used the last little bit of strength to push his sword out of the way. Then I stooped down, slapped the Hero in the face (causing his eyes to open and him to shout "Wha?!"), and stood up just in time to see Ganon's huge sword come towards me with blinding speed in a horizontal slice.

By sheer luck, I wasn't cut in half. The flat of the blade is what actually hit me, luckily. Although, it hurt so much, I wasn't sure if I _wanted_ to be alive at that point. My vision turned fuzzy for a second, but I shook my aching head and blinked a couple of times to focus.

When Ganon had hit me, his tail - because he had a tail, and it was his weak spot, I just realized - had been open to an attack. The Hero leapt at it, and Ganondorf shuddered and fell to his knees.

Suddenly, a bright yellow light shone, and I heard Zelda call, "I'm using my power to hold the Evil King! Use your sword and deliver the final blow!" The light faded, and Zelda collapsed to the ground on her knees.

The Master Sword glowed blue as the Hero charged Ganon, who was writhing in pain, and then slashed once, twice, three times - and then, on the fourth blow, I transported myself, using the shows cast by the darkness surrounding, straight into Ganon's cold, blackened heart, which was more of a shadow than anything I'd ever felt before.

And, right as the Hero stabbed Ganondorf in between the eyes, I gripped my sword tight and stabbed him in his cold, black heart. I could feel Ganon get up, roaring in pain, and stumble around blindly, and then heard Zelda call:

"Six Sages… Now!" And a burning light filled everything - every inch of Ganon's form, and every inch of mine.

It was pain unlike anything I've ever felt before. In fact, the word pain doesn't describe what happened. It hurt so much, I don't even know how to begin describing it. And then, somehow, it increased as Ganon, with me trapped inside him, unable to travel since there were no more shadows, was banished back into the Dark Realm.

Somehow Ganon found the strength to shout at those imprisoning him.

"YOU…" he screamed. "CURSE YOU… ZELDA! CURSE YOU… SAGES! CURSE YOU… LINK! Someday… when this seal is broken… That is when I will exterminate your descendants! As long as the Triforce of Power is in my hand…"

And then the portal shut, not to open again until Ganon had re-harnessed his power.


	10. A Respite

**Hey everyone! This chapter isn't really much of a chapter - it's so short! It's told in third person; it had to be done. Anyway, here's your little "respite" from Dark's pov!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda. Never have, never will.**

**-SM**

A Respite

Link was sitting in the Temple of Time, the Master Sword on his lap. He was sitting there, staring at the jewel in the hilt, when Zelda walked in. He didn't even look up when she started talking.

"Link?" she started uncertainly. "Do you want to come out to the Market? You've been in here for two days… The people are calling for you, and… there are festivities…" she trailed off. There was a pause.

"Zelda," he said, finally looking up at her. "Where did he get to? I mean… you saw how badly he was injured. It's not like he could have run off…" but he stopped. His eyes narrowed and he said, "Wait a second. You have that look in your eyes. You know something."

"What look?" she cried. "My eyes are fine! And… who do you mean?"

"You know who I'm talking about. Dark Link."

"Wh-why do you want to see him? Didn't you two have a duel to the death in the Water Temple?"

He winced. "Well… yes, but then we realized it was just a setup and that we actually _didn't_ hate each other. And didn't I ask you - who was Sheik at the time - to look after him?"

"...Yes."

"Okay. Now tell me where he is," he pleaded. Zelda sighed.

"Okay, Link… but you're not going to like it." He raised an eyebrow, but waited in silence. Zelda took a deep breath. "He's in the Dark Realm," she told him. His eyes widened.

"WHAT?!" he yelled, jumping to his feet. "And you LEFT him there?!"

She made a placating gesture with her hands. "Well… I was talking with the other Sages-" but she got no further as Link cut her off.

"Oh. So it's okay to tell the other Sages, who had to be rescued in order to defeat Ganondorf, but you can't tell the the person who rescued them, saved you, defeated Ganondorf, AND Ganon, saved Hyrule, and just happens to be the Hero of Time, the hero chosen by the three goddesses."

"Um… yes."

He rolled his eyes. "And I used to think you were nice," he muttered to himself. Navi poked her head out of his hat.

"What'd you say?" she asked him. Then, noticing the Princess, said, "Oh, hi, Princess."

"Hello, Navi," she said cheerfully. "Can you please help me to calm down the Hero? He has a speech to give."

Link blinked. "Wait. A… speech?"

"Yep," Zelda nodded. He started backing away.

"Uh… that wasn't in the job description..." he started.

Zelda rolled her eyes and grabbed his arm. "Come on, Hero. I think Malon wants to talk to you anyway."

"Tell her I'm not home?" he asked hopefully. Navi went under his hat and said, "I'm not being seen in public with _him._"

"Navi, you have to," argued the Princess. "Its one of the ways they'll recognize him from far away."

"I thought that was the hat," Link put in.

But he let Zelda pull him out of the doorway, and through the back alley. "When I say that you're coming, you'd better show up," she muttered in his ear. "Otherwise the King will hear about it."

He looked at her face, hoping she was joking.

No such luck for him. She looked dead serious.

Zelda stepped out into the square and walked over to a platform, which had been built right after Ganon's defeat. The Market had improved, and the redeads had all turned back into regular people again.

Link saw Malon, standing on the fountain's edge, looking for someone (probably him), Sakon running around happily, and a girl chasing a cucco around. There were dogs, just like before, and Talon had one balancing on top of his head with a huge grin on his face. Ingo was there, with his pitchfork hoisted on his shoulder, and there were palace guards - some were guarding, some were drinking… who knows what.

Overall, it was the perfect picture of… celebrating Ganon's defeat.

"Ladies and gentlemen," a loud, clear voice echoed off the walls of the houses surrounding the square. It was Zelda. "I would now like to announce someone who will be coming up today… and giving a speech, if you can call it that. Please giv-" but whatever else she was going to say as interrupted by a loud roar from the crowd, whistles, and cheers as Link walked up towards the front.

"Sorry, Princess," he grinned at her. She could barely hear him over the racket.

"Make them be quiet!" she scolded. He rolled his eyes as she walked off the stage, and raised his hands in an _okay, that's enough,_ gesture.

"Well… ahem." he cleared his throat. "So… I'm the Hero of Time."

More cheers. "But!" he called over the noise, "Seven years ago, I was a nobody." Everything quieted again. "I was… well, I was just a little 11-year-old kid wandering around Hyrule, until some crazy things happened." There was a dramatic pause, which was interrupted by Malon screaming, "MARRY ME!" from the edge of the fountain. Link flashed her a grin and started talking again.

"Well, anyway, I ran into Ganondorf, and he scared the crap out of me. Literally." He grinned ruefully, remembering the time, years ago, at the bridge to Hyrule Castle. "I don't remember exactly what he told me, but I remember him saying, 'I like your attitude.' Well, I didn't like that, so my attitude changed quick enough - Navi can be a witness of that.

"Anyway, after I retrieved the Master Sword… well, I travelled back and forth between time, and saved Hyrule, blah blah blah. But you guys all _know_ that part of the story. What I want to tell you guys - and I'm terrible at getting my point across, sorry - is this: I was a nobody. But that's why the goddesses chose me. Because anybody, if they believe in something, can do anything.

"Look around you. You know that girl who chasing the cucco around earlier?" He waved to her. "She could someday become a rich noble, and you" -he pointed at someone in the crowd- "could eventually be bowing and scraping in front of her."

He smiled suddenly and whispered something. People surged forward to try and hear what he said, but he'd been talking to Navi.

"Or," he proclaimed loudly, "you could be doing that in front of Zelda, who just dropped a pastry on the ground." Everyone spun around, looking for the Princess, and Link leapt off the stage quickly, heading through an alley to get back to the Temple of Time.

He got there, and closed the door, leaning against it, eyes closed. "So," he said to Navi as she flew out in front of him, "what's your grand idea for getting him out of the Dark Realm?"

"Oh, that's easy," said Navi, sitting on his shoulder, "just open the portal, grab him, get out, and shut the portal!"

"Easier said than done," he told her, opening his eyes - and finding himself staring into those of Princess Zelda, who was wearing a crooked grin on her face as he stumbled, pushing the doors open again and falling down the steps.

She was all too obviously trying not to laugh as he picked himself up, dusted off his hat, and stalked up the steps again. "It's just too funny, isn't it Princess, to walk up to someone and scare the living daylights out of him by grinning down that long, pointy nose of yours."

"Ex-cuse me?" she demanded. "Did you just make fun of my _nose?_"

"Yup. Now: can you do me a favor?"

"Depends on the favor," she shot back.

"Its easy," he said quickly. "Call the Sages here."

"Um, Link," she said. "Now, here?"

"Yes!" He insisted. "Just trust me, okay - I _do_ know what I'm doing most of the time, you know."

"'Most of the time?'" She muttered. But then she closed her eyes, raised her hands up, and called out. The temple filled with warmth as the Sages all travelled here. In a flash of light, they arrived.

"What do you need, Zelda?" asked Nabooru, the Gerudo.

She gestured helplessly at me. "His party," she said. "He wanted you."

Navi flew around Link's head to accentuate the point. "Thanks, Navi," he said sarcastically.

"Hey, I was just trying to help!" she said.

"Uh-huh, suuure you were."

"If you're done arguing, can we get to the point of this?" Ruto asked with a bored sigh. Her flippers bristled slightly with irritation as she said, "Plus, you _still_ owe me."

Link's eyebrows furrowed. "Owe _you?_ Owe you for what?"

"For leading me on like that!" she cried. "For accepting the Zora's engagement stone! I thought for sure we had something - and then you _hid_ from me for seven whole years, while I sat around, waiting, finally to be awakened as the Sage of Water. Like, seriously?" She waved her finger in his face, which burned almost as red as his ears.

"I told you, Ruto, I didn't even know what engagement was! And when I asked Navi, she wouldn't give me a straight answer. Also, I was trapped, not hiding, for seven years. Get the facts right."

Darunia cleared his throat. "Well, brother, now that we've gone around with the usual hellos, lets get this show on the road. What do you want?"

Link took a deep breath, looked each one of them individually in the eye, and then said, "Open the portal."

Navi nudged him. "Please?" He added.

"But, um, Link," said Saria. "We just sealed it. Don't you think we should, maybe, wait a little bit first?" For an eternal 11-year-old, she was pretty brave to tell Link; however, the other Sages knew he wouldn't hurt her, since they grew up together - which was not a sure thing for the other Six Sages.

"But if we wait," Link said, working to keep his anger down, "he could die! Just like that!" he said, snapping his fingers.

"Link," Ruaru said, taking "he" the wrong way. "Ganon is not going to die 'just like that'. He has the Triforce of Power-"

"-which is exactly why we need to save Dark Link," Link cut in.

"Oh… him," said Nabooru. "What I don't get is why we're even getting him out of there. Isn't he an _evil_ shadow?" She looked sternly at Link. "He almost killed you."

"And I almost killed him," Link said, "but in the end he chose to help me - he saved my life from Ganon, and in return? We banished him forever. If I was him - and I am - I'd be pretty ticked off." He paused, realized he'd given them an opening, and cried, "Ticked off with the Sages, of course! Unless they saved me. Then I wouldn't be."

As one, they all raised their right eyebrow. "Um… don't do that," Link said. "Its creepy. Anyway, are you going to help me or not?"

"I'll do anything for my brother," Darunia put in.

"Link," said Saria kindly, "We grew up together. You promised you'd never forget me, and you didn't. Do you still have the fairy ocarina I gave you when you left Kokiri Forest?"

"I… yes," he pulled it out of his pouch.

"Then I'm with you, too," she said simply.

"Well," said Ruto, "if Saria thinks its good, then I suppose I do too."

Impa just nodded.

Nabooru said, "Kid, you're smart. You've got guts. Let's do this!"

"I suppose," Ruaru began slowly, "That I have no choice. I'll help."

That left Zelda, whose mouth was hanging open in shock. "Come on, Princess," Link said. "Let's go beat up Ganon... again."

And the Sages, surrounding the Pedestal of Time, each faded away into different colored balls of light - Saria was green, Darunia was golden brown, Nabooru was yellow, Ruto was blue, and Rauru was silver. The light all shot towards the center, and became a blindingly white portal - it seemed to suck all darkness inside of it for a moment - and then it just sat there, waiting.

Link stared into it. Suddenly, a curious face stared back out. It was a bokoblin.

And then the monsters came out. En masse. They charged the Hero, who drew the Master Sword and started hacking away like he was born for it - which he was.

Suddenly, Sheik was fighting alongside him, wielding his katana with alarming speed.

"Glad you're on my side," Link called over the din of monsters.

"Ditto!" He called back.

The first wave had been easy enough - the was a momentary lull as something happened on the other side. "What's going on?" he asked Sheik.

"Ganon… something with Ganon… he… charged!" Sheik's momentarily closed eyes snapped forward as a second wave washed it.

"WHAT?!" Link yelled, then went back to the fighting. After a couple moments of that, he said, "Sheik! What happens if I go in?"

"WHAT?!"

"_What happens I go into the portal?_" He said, louder.

"You'd be able to make it, I'm pretty sure… Ruaru said it hurts. A lot."

"Okay!"

"Wait, Link; why?!"

"Bye!" And he started cleaving them down like wheat, getting closer… and closer… to the portal. He leapt at it…

...and hit the shield of a Stalfos, which was barring his way. Another one came through the portal - then another, and another. Suddenly, Link found himself encased in a ring of Stalfos.

"...Hi?" He tried.

"Link!" Navi whispered. "The only way I know how to kill it is to lure it close to you and watch its movement carefully! You have to attack only when it drops it guard!"

"Tough when there's seven of them surrounding you," Link pointed out. But he charged anyway - right up until a commanding voice rolled through the portal - and it was so intense Link listened.

"Stop!" The voice said.

It was Ganondorf. There was a figure at his feet, which had a black tunic and a black hat on the ground next to him. His black sword looked just like the Master Sword… "Dark Link," the Hero breathed.

Ganondorf stood over him, sword drawn. "Move away, Stalfos," he said mockingly. "Let the little Hero try - just try - to kill me in the Dark Realm."

Maybe Link should have been insulted. But he was just angry. Here was his dead archenemy, actually still alive and kicking, mocking him.

How… irritating.

The Stalfos moved aside. Link jumped through the portal. Burning pain stretched over every inch of his body, until everything turned black, and all he was aware of was the pain.

When he woke up, Ganondorf was laughing. Some sixth sense warned him that when fighting an enemy, never stay in one spot. He rolled to the right, and heard a _crack!_ as Ganondorf's blade slammed into the ground next to him. He quickly stood up, grasping the Master Sword.

And engaged Ganondorf on the most dangerous terrain… ever.

As they battled on Ganondorf's home turf, Link felt a sense of hopelessness. _There's no way you're ever going to win,_ said a voice in his head. _You're outmatched. You're losing. Give up._

Link heard Sheik cry out, and glanced through the portal, just in time to see Sheik fall to the floor. But as he was distracted, Ganondorf used the momentary distraction to slam the hilt of his sword into Link's side.

Link staggered away from him, gasping - until he tripped over Dark Link, and fell, flat on his back. He'd lost his grip on the Master Sword. He heard Dark Link groan and shift under him.

"You… you _fool!_" Ganondorf said, wheezing with laughter. "And you thought you could beat me here? What more is there to do to me? What could you possibly hope to take away from me? I've already lost everything! Did you hope to gain something? What is here, that is useful to you?"

Link looked at Dark Link, then at Ganondorf, and the portal, which was behind Ganondorf. He stood up, grabbing the black Master Sword, and took a swing at Ganondorf. Then he kicked Dark Link - not to hard, but not too soft, either - to help him come around. His eyes fluttered open and Link said, "Ganondorf, I wanted _him._" And he hauled up Dark Link, took a wild swing at the startled Ganondorf, and jumped through the portal - and it immediately shut behind him.


	11. Chapter 10

**I'm back! And with me, is chapter 10! *cheers* Not sure how many people are even reading this, but oh well. *laughs* Here's the final chapter of Who's Side... *smirks* Enjoy it!**

**_Edit 7/1/14:_ I am changing the ending up a little bit, and will probably be adding an eleventh chapter soon.**

**Disclaimer: I own a lot of things - just not Zelda.**

**-SM**

Chapter Ten

_Ow!_

Now _that_ hurt.

OW!

What are they doing to me…?

The third time I got poked, I wondered idly where my sword was, and then decided I should tell them to stop - whoever "them" was. "That hurt," I murmured sleepily. "Gimme a break, mkay?"

"He talked!" said an excited voice - it sounded like a little kid. I opened my heavy eyelids and saw James staring at me with a big smile.

"KELLY!" He yelled, turning away and running out the door, which gave me a bit of time to look at my surroundings.

...Woah. My surroundings. Where was I? This bed was huge - the heavy curtains all around it made me feel like I was in fabricated box.

And everything was purple. What's up with that? Purple does _not_ go with my black color scheme. Then suddenly one of them moved, and Kelly appeared. "You're awake at last," she said. She sounded scared of me.

"Um… yeah. Wait… 'at last'?" My voice sounded weird - probably just from not using it.

"Well, yes. You've been laying there for about two days. Um… a lot has happened," she said.

I raised an eyebrow. "So… let's start small: where is here?" I gestured at the bed. "And-" But then I stopped. I tilted my head to the side. And my eyebrows narrowed as I studied my left hand.

"What is it?" Kelly asked, looking alarmed.

"I'm tan," I told her. "And… the Triforce of Courage is gone from my hand." Never thought I'd miss that. Also, I noticed some scars from where Ganondorf's sword had sliced up my fingers. Judging from the scars, I'd say he got me pretty good.

"Um… yeahhh…and..." she stopped.

"What?" I demanded. "What else is wrong with me?"

"It's definitely you," she said in a decidedly tone, confusing me more. "Anyway, this is Hyrule Castle, and if you really want to know… well, you should probably just look for yourself. There's a mirror in the room, if you want... Oh yeah. One second." She reached outside the curtain-bed-thing and threw a pair of white pants at me. "You might want to put these on," she said, trying hard not to laugh at the disgusted look on my face.

"You took my pants?!" I finally yelled.

"No!" She said. "They, uh… they actually fell off. While you were sleeping. Because they were so ripped."

"Ahem…" I took the pants from her, slipped them on under the covers, and then swung my feet over the edge of the bed, ignoring Kelly's proffered hand. "I'm fine," I told her gruffly.

Then I stood up - or tried to, at least. My legs, weak from all the previous wounds - and my ankle, which still ached - caused me to stumble into Kelly. Also, the light was super bright. I'd been expecting it to be night. Kelly, thank Din, caught me.

"Just like old times in the desert, eh?" she muttered, bringing me over to a huge mirror that stretched all the way from the floor to probably… oh, I'd say it was about ten feet tall. It went up about three fourths of the way to the ceiling - as I'd noticed before, everything was _huge_.

I looked in. My eyes widened.

My eyes! They weren't completely red anymore… Just the iris was red. I moistened my regular, tan-colored lips. And my face…

My jawline was more rugged, and I had a five o'clock shadow on it. My nose wasn't as pointy, it had more curve, and my hair… it was still dark, but instead of black it was just dark brown, and a little bit longer.

I also looked… younger. My frown deepened.

My shoulders were broader, I noticed. The scowl on my face looked… different from normal. I looked like a different person. Kelly was standing behind me, and I could see as well as hear her swallow.

I turned around. "So… you said a lot has happened?" I asked her.

"Well… yes. There are multiple people who wanted to see you when you woke up - James is one of them, because… well, 'he's my big brother!' And… Princess Zelda and the Hero of Time both want to ask you some questions - hey, what's wrong?" she finally said, probably picking up on how my scowl deepened at the mention of Her Royal Highness, Princess Zelda of Lies and Disguises as well as Hyrule.

"Nothing," I said shortly. "Where's my sword?"

"Uh, you don't have a sword. It got… well, as soon as Link brought it back through the portal, it disappeared. But, um, now that you're awake, well, it's just past lunch time. I guess you're going to dinner tonight, then, with Link and the Princess. King Otis is so busy that he won't be able to attend, but he's sure that Zelda can do fine in his place," she told me. "And why do you hate Zelda so much?"

"Me? I don't hate the Princess…" I said, staring up at the ceiling.

She reached out hesitantly, and touched my arm. "Does it… hurt?" She asked me.

"No. It's fine. Go ahead," I said. She wrapped her arms around me and gave me a big hug. I was a little bit surprised.

"You can tell me," she whispered finally.

"I… she just… lied to me. A lot. And then, when I thought I had the truth… she ended up actually to have lied to me again, and I accidentally overheard her talking to someone, telling him the truth. I just… it... it creates a bitter feeling," I sighed.

She looked a bit lost, so I said, "Well, I'm fine now. You can, um, go if you want."

"Ah. Okay," she said. If I didn't know better, I'd have thought she was disappointed.

She walked out. I went over to the bed and sat down on the edge, moving the drapes away from it. I saw a shirt in a dresser, and a letter on it, too.

I grabbed the shirt, then ripped open the seal to the letter, which was Zelda's.

Dark Link,

I'm not sure if I should still call you that, but I will for the sake of this note. I'm also unsure when exactly you will wake up - but please, I would like to speak with you at dinner. I'm sure that whoever is watching you will tell you of this.

Her Royal Highness,

Princess Zelda of Hyrule.

I stared at the note. She didn't know.

She didn't know, that I _did_ know.

I set the letter down. My hands were shaking. I sat back down on the bed, and rested my head in my hands, with my elbows on my knees.

I hope King Otis doesn't find out that… I kissed her.

In the name of all three goddesses, I wouldn't have _kissed _her if I'd known!

I laid on the way too comfy bed for awhile - it felt like forever. Then I walked over to the window and sat on the edge, looking down at the huge drop into the field below.

"It's a nice view, isn't it?" said a voice behind me. _Right_ behind me.

I almost fell off the ledge. That voice… I turned and looked. Liam.

And suddenly, I staggered as all my memories came rushing back to me. The nights when he would hear a noise and come crawl over to me, whispering, "Ramian, I'm scared," with those big puppy eyes… the times that we spent chasing down the girls… Mom… and Dad…

And the night that we went travelling. And ran into Ganondorf. My eyes squeezed shut at the memory.

"Are you okay?" Liam's voice snapped me back into the present. I looked up at him, eyes wide.

"I was never Dark Link," I realized aloud. "I was always… Ramian. Ganondorf took me, and he… blocked out all my memories. He changed my form."

"You look just like him," Liam said. "Ramian, I mean. And… that makes sense. Nobody ever saw you again after… that encounter."

I realized I was on my knees, clutching my head. "Hey, Liam," I said. "Remember that time when you 'accidentally' shoved me down the steps at the windmill?"

A slow smile spread across his face. "And do _you_ remember that time when I came over to your bed, and you went over and slept in mine the whole night, leaving me by myself?"

I started laughing. "You deserved it, bed-snatcher!"

He joined in. "I might snatch your bed now. That thing looks _comfortable!_"

"It is," I told him, "Unless you've been sleeping in it for two days straight. Now let's eat. I'msimply_ starved_."

"You would be," he said. "You were always hungry when we were little."

"So were you!" I said. "You just got full as soon as the vegetables came around."

"I did!" He cried as we ran down the steps towards the castle kitchen.

"Uh-huh." I was unimpressed.

I finally pulled on the shirt, which I'd neglected to do after reading the letter from Zelda (that I successfully hid in my back pocket from Liam). We went to the kitchen and had some bread, which was mostly good - except Liam took half my piece and ate it in one bite. "Sorry," he said, with his mouth full. "I didn't mean to eat it."

My mouth was hanging open, so I grabbed his sandwich and shoved that in my mouth. "S'okay," I told him while chewing.

We stayed there until the cook told us that we'd "better get outta my kitchen before I tell the guards there are _thieves_ in my kitchen!"

So then we ran out into the courtyard. I was walking backwards, telling Liam about Ivan (since he still didn't know), when I turned a corner and ran into somebody.

"-and so when I said 'Ivan' that time it was because - woah!"

"Ah!" said a female voice from behind me. I tripped while twisting out of the way, and fell flat on my back onto the cobblestoned path. I got up immediately, rubbing my right, already injured ankle, which had probably gotten twisted in the fall.

Liam was trying not to laugh. I could tell by the way he was turned away from us and his shoulders were uncontrollably shaking. "I'm so, so sorry," I said, turning to look at the person I ran in to.

It was Zelda.

Oh, Din.

"It's okay," she said.

Suddenly, my throat went dry. I blinked, and then went down on one knee. I sensed Liam hastily following suit. "Princess. My apologies. I was being reckless…"

But she pushed my chin up and looked into my eyes. "It's perfectly alright," she told me. "I spent my childhood running into people, too."

"Not to be contradictory, but I'm hardly a child anymore, at age seventeen."

A faint smile touched her lips.

She was travelling with her usual retinue, and a couple of guards, I noticed. I also noticed that she was wearing a blue dress, with a purple bodice and purple gloves. It looked good.

"How are you feeling?" She asked me.

"Much better, thank you, Highness."

"Please," she said, "call me Zelda… or, if you feel funny, Princess will do."

"Yes, Princess." I said, lowering my eyes again.

"I'll see you at dinner?" she asked.

"Yes," I said, in a rather tight voice.

She nodded to me, and for a moment I saw the pain in her eyes. Then she blinked, and moved on through the courtyard.

"Do you know her?" Liam asked, eyes wide.

"I… no. No, I don't."

"Huh," Liam said with a frown. "You're a terrible liar. We need to work on that."

Despite myself, I smiled. "And what makes you think I'm lying?"

"Because you talk in your sleep, just like Ramian."

My smile faded. "I am Ramian."

Silence. We kept walking.

"Sorry," he finally managed to say. "I didn't mean it like that. Its just… weird - but nice at the same time - to have you back. Not used to it."

"I know," I said, looking down.

"Hey, Ramian?" He asked.

"Yeah?"

"I wonder… if we're allowed to pick the flowers."

A slow smile spread out across my face. I saw one tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Is there… a sign that says not too?" I asked him.

So we spent a couple minutes looking for a sign, and found none.

"Hey, Ramian?" Liam asked.

"Yeah?"

"I was wondering… how much does Kelly like flowers?"

We both busted out laughing.

"Poppies, or… hydrangeas," he wheezed.

"Maybe…both?"

We couldn't stop laughing. We walked around the courtyard for awhile, and then finally I said, "Hey, Liam, I gotta go to the, uh, bathroom. Where is it?"

He laughed, giving me directions. "I'll meet up with you at dinner!" I called to him.

"Wasn't invited!" he called back.

"Come to dinner!" I told him. "You're invited, Liam, just come - and bring your fgirlfriend if you want." And with that, I sped off into the Castle.

I went to the bathroom, then up to my room to get ready. "Wish I had my sword," I muttered to myself.

Then I sat down, thinking about what was going to happen and how I should act. The silence around me was sort of nice, but I just missed Ivan, as annoying as she was.

Ivan…

I wondered if Navi was going to be with Link. I decided that she probably would be.

I heard the bell at the Temple of Time chime six o'clock.

Time to go.

I combed my hair one last time, hoping that it looked okay. I'd spent the last nine years dealing with different hair. Ramian's - or mine, I guess - was more… frizzy.

As I got to the last step on the tower, I pulled on my other boot, hopping on one foot. Then I took a deep breath, and walked through the door into the Dining Room.

Everyone turned to look and see who it was - except for Princess Zelda and a couple of other noble ladies, who had the good sense not to stare at the underdressed fellow who just walked in.

I gave everyone a crooked smile, and took my place at the table next to Link, who, thankfully, was just wearing his green tunic.

"Don't you ever change out of that?" I asked him out of the corner of my mouth.

"Did you ever change out of yours?" he asked, in the same fashion.

I couldn't help grinning. "Nope," I said.

"Same here."

"I'm so glad you could make it…" Princess Zelda said to me - but stopped, unsure what to call me.

"Just call me Ramian, please, Princess." I said humbly.

"Ramian," she said.

One of the ladies pushed a guy forward, out of a group off to the side. He was laughing. Link nudged me. "Watch this," he said with a small smile.

"My most wonderful and beautiful Highness, Princess Zelda of all Hyrule, my name is Sir Kisiel. I come from the land just to the south of Hyrule, and now that I am here, I have realized what a fair land this is.

"You are a fair and just person, Highness, and I am here to make you a proposal. In marriage," he added, getting down on one knee. One of the girls in the corner let out a little giggle. Everything else continued on, like this was perfectly normal.

"Sir Kisiel," said Zelda in a high voice, "I appreciate your flattering offer, and am sure that you are a most valiant knight. However, I cannot accept. I am terrible sorry for this."

"She always apologizes at the end," Link murmured to me. "Why? Everyone knows she's not sorry."

"Maybe she doesn't want the poor Sir Kisiel to feel bad," I said.

"Maybe," Link sounded unconvinced.

"Ramian," Zelda said. "I was wondering if you, um, would like to walk with me." She suddenly seemed nervous, and tense as a cat. Also, the way she talked made it seem like it was more of an order than a question.

"Of course, Princess," I said. Before we could leave, however, I shot Link a smug look. He just laughed and started talking to someone while eating my bread.

She signaled her guards to leave us alone; then we walked into the courtyard.

She opened her mouth several times to start speaking, but kept closing it before any sounds could come out. Finally, she said, "Ramian, do you know a noble lady named Clarinda?"

Oh.

So this what we were to talk about. "Yes," I answered, determined to use the smallest amount of words as possible.

"Do you… know her very well?"

"Um… you could say that," I said.

"Would you be upset if something happened to her?"

"Look, Highness," I said angrily, "what's with the interrogation? And… just get to the point."

Her eyebrows knit. "Well… she doesn't exist."

"Yes she does!" I said, still using an angry tone. "I kis… I've met with her and touched her. She's real alright."

She was not getting off the hook easy, I thought grimly.

"No. She… Well, I suppose I'll just tell you this: I'm Sheik."

I paused in our walk, and she turned around to face me. There was a desperate, sad look on her face that made me feel bad for her. But still, I answered as I'd prepared to: "I know," I said, clipping the words short.

She took a pace back. "You do?" she asked, startled.

"I was there… when you told the Hero," I referred to him as 'the Hero' because that's how I always did it as Dark Link. It had been a little bit of a mark on my ego to constantly be reminded that you were just someone's dark form, and that your name was just… unoriginal.

"Oh… how? I didn't see you…" Her jaw suddenly dropped. "You were there with Ganondorf," she whispered. "And… that magic he used… I knew it wasn't just him. But there was so much other stuff going on, that I…" she locked eyes with me. "He couldn't have done it without you," she said.

"I… I didn't know it at the time," I said. "And I was pretty mad at you. Oh yeah, and did I mention, I'd been brought so close to death that I could barely think straight?"

"Still!" she said. "You knew that you were doing something wrong, didn't you?" She asked. "Or do shadows not have consciences?"

"All I knew was that you were a lying… stupid… backstabbing… girl!"

"Well-" she started to say something, when someone came out into the courtyard.

"Princess," he said, "the King himself has arrived."

"Father is here?" She gasped. Then she hiked up her dress and rushed off towards the Dining Room.

"We'll finish this later!" She called over her shoulder to me.

I rolled my eyes.

Women. They always thought they were right.


	12. Epilogue

**I know, it's short. Super short. But, well, it IS an epilogue. Anyway, I can't believe this is already over. *Grabs a pillow and cries* Well... here it is, I guess. OH! One more thing... Please don't kill me for the ending. I was... kinda in a bad mood when I originally planned everything out, like forever ago... so yeah. *smiles nervously***

**Disclaimer: Words are mine. Zelda is not.**

**-SM**

Epilogue

We finished the banquet with Link offering Zelda a dance, her accepting, and them speeding off to the courtyard to be together. Alone.

Liam and Kelly arrived while I was gone, apparently. They looked really happy when I came in, until Liam saw the stormy expression that normally gets on my face when he punched me as a little kid.

He managed to pull me out of the room (with Kelly's help) and calm me down before King Otis noticed I was here. Then I went back out, dressed more appropriately in some of Liam's stuff, and was thanked by the very gracious King for saving his only daughter's life.

Somehow, Zelda failed to mention that I accidentally tried to kill her a few times.

Not sure if that was good or bad, but with all the wedding preparations going on - hers and Kelly's - she never got me alone.

Anyway, I met Kelly's parents - they just remembered Ramian as a mischievous little boy with an even more mischievous little brother, who grew up to be a nice young man.

The other Sheikah were happy to see me, even though I never wore the Sheikah outfit.

I didn't really think it would look good on me, and… well, I never really thought of myself as a Sheikah. I mean, I mostly grew up as a Hylian named Dark Link. Actually, I wasn't even Hylian. I was more… shadow.

Anyway, Navi still didn't trust me, which I didn't mind.

But, back to the weddings. Liam and Kelly got married, and not long after, they announced that there was going to be more to the Curr bloodline, which made me smile. Until Liam told me I'd better be a good uncle - then I started freaking out. James was just excited.

Liam and Kelly had a little boy, which they named Derek. Then they had five other kids, too - three girls and another two boys. Fun. Apparently I was a good uncle, because Liam tells me they love "Uncle Rame."

Also, Liam was so good at being a Sheikah that he actually became their leader, which is why he and Kelly stayed at Kakariko Village until the very end.

Link was soon knighted by Princess Zelda, and became the best in the business. They eventually married and had children, who I tried to stay away from.

Zelda never finished that talk with me, which always brings a smirk to my face. Anyway, they got their happy ending, too. When her father died, it had a huge negative impact on Hyrule, but the now-Queen Zelda pulled the kingdom back together. I have to give her that, she makes a good queen.

James grew up, found himself a nice girl, and married her. They ended up having three kids, I'm pretty sure.

Anyone else… oh. Anju married the guy running the Shooting Gallery, who didn't believe that I was one and the same as the guy with the high score - who had been Dark Link. Still me!

...Sort of.

Navi actually flew back to Kokiri Forest, which Link didn't take too well. Not that I cared, naturally. I had no more ties with the Hero. I only saved the kingdom with him.

And me? I lived to a ripe, lonely old age, roaming Hyrule and never actually settling anywhere. As Dark Link, I'd never stood a chance to get someone - I mean, I'd managed to get Clarinda, but… when she turned into Zelda, everything between us evaporated.

The Ramian side of me could have gotten any girl he wanted with his looks - if he'd had more time. But since Ganondorf stole nine years of my life, I never got to know any young girls, and by the time I did, they were all married, or already had their knights in shining armor by the time I knew them…

I thought about trying for knighthood - since I used the same technique as Link, and almost beat him with it, I figured I could probably do pretty good. On the other hand, I'd have to fight him for the position, and I kind of dreaded having to fight him again.

It'd raise a lot of… interesting questions.

Anyway, I didn't want to be stationed in one place forever - especially Kakariko Village or the Market. Those places were way too crowded. That's why I always travelled.

But look on the bright side.

Liam never took my bed again.

THE END


End file.
